Harry Potter and the Friend from the Future
by CPO Backstreet
Summary: Part 7 of my post-epilogue series. Harry and Hermione Potter return to their teaching positions at Hogwarts after their recent trials. But an old grudge places Harry in danger and sees the couple's daughter Nymphadora and her friends sent on a dangerous quest.
1. Chapter 1: We Begin Again

**Well, even though almost everyone seemed to hate my last story, especially the ending, I still got asked for a sequel so here we are again. This is the seventh of my post-epilogue fictions so reading of the rest of the series is recommended. This saga does its best to stay in continuity with the seven Harry Potter books and eight Harry Potter films. Anything else is ignored. Unless I like it.**

 **It's getting to the point where I need an introduction to keep track of what's happened to all the characters so here's a partial recap of what's been established about the Potter family.**

 **Harry and Hermione married following the death of Ginny and Hermione's divorce from Ron. They have a daughter, Nymphadora, who is about to start her third year.**

 **James Potter married Emily Longbottom, the daughter of Neville and Luna and younger sister of his best friend Martin. They have two children, Tracey and Joshua.**

 **Albus Potter was killed as a young adult during the uprising by the True Way. At the time, his girlfriend Melissa Dorrans was pregnant and later gave birth to his son, Albus Jr.**

 **Lily Potter married a Muggle, Gordon Preston. They have one daughter, Amy.**

 **Rose Weasley became pregnant and married Scorpius Malfoy while still at school. As a result, her daughter Gemini is only a few months younger than Nymphadora. They also have a son, Balthasar.**

 **Hugo Weasley is unmarried and childless. He has a girlfriend, Marie Lucas.**

 **Aside from Gemini, Nymphadora's closest friends are Bradley Wood (the grandson of Oliver Wood and Katie Bell; his mother is a muggleborn whose older sister married Martin Longbottom, making him a distant relation by marriage), Beverly Cardogan (muggleborn), Flavia Lupin (daughter of Teddy and Victoire) and Maxwell Jordan (grandson of Lee Jordan and Angelina Johnson).**

 **Now...on with the story!**

* * *

CHAPTER ONE: We Begin Again

Harry Potter felt rather nervous as he stood outside his house, leaning against the car that the rules of the wizarding world would soon require him to drive. His wife Hermione came out and joined him, standing in silence with him for a moment. She knew what he was thinking, of course. Perhaps she was thinking much the same herself. "Do you think he'll be there?"

"I'd imagine so,"Hermione noted. "His only grandchildren taking their first trip on the Hogwarts Express together."

Harry knew she was right. Ron Weasley. Once his best friend. For the last fifteen years or so, more or less a friend. At worst, someone he could be civil towards. But the events of the last year, when for the best of reasons they had ended up on opposite sides in a civil war, had changed that. It was a war that Harry had to all intents and purposes lost and he still wasn't sure if he'd done the right thing starting it. Even though he and those who had fought with him had received a full pardon, even though there had been public gestures of reconciliation, there were bound to be resentments.

"Does this feel more or less awkward than when we first got together?"Hermione wondered.

Harry smiled at that. Ron had also been Hermione's first husband, of course. The fact that she had basically left Ron for him had been the cause of the initial cooling between them. "Is there any chance we can send Nymphadora on her own and the two of us go to Hogwarts by floo? It's not like teachers _have_ to go by the express. I could lend her a broom."

"Dora will be crushed if we do that,"Hermione pointed out. "Come on, we haven't missed the Hogwarts Express since…"

"Three years ago?"Harry suggested ironically. His first family had finished school several years ago. Nymphadora had been an after-thought.

"You know what I mean."

"Well, I suppose the Minister won't want to curse us in public. It might affect his chances for re-election."

Nymphadora, their daughter, came out of the house at that point, laden down with trunks. "Are we going then?"

Harry and Hermione exchanged smiles. "Yes, we are,"Harry confirmed.

* * *

Nymphadora led the way onto the platform. She scanned the crowd of faces and quickly picked out Gemini Malfoy, the daughter of her half-sister Rose. Gemini gave a cheery wave, showing only slight annoyance at the fact that her brother Balthasar was standing next to her: It was his first year at Hogwarts. Her parents, Rose and Scorpius, were with her…as was her grandfather, Ron, the Minister of Magic.

Bradley Wood detached himself from the crowd and came over to her. "So, are we hoping for a quieter year this year?"

"It would be nice,"Nymphadora agreed.

"Well, unless someone else is going to start a war against the Ministry…" Bradley suddenly seemed to notice that Harry was there. "No offence, Professor."

"I hope you've done your holiday reading, Bradley,"Harry remarked mildly.

"Of course, Professor Potter. And Professor Potter Junior gave us a few lessons in defensive spells last year." Bradley nodded towards Harry's son James, who was standing with his family further along the platform.

"Have you seen Beverley?"Nymphadora asked, looking around for her best friend from Gryffindor.

"Maybe she's on board already,"Bradley suggested.

Nymphadora nodded in agreement. "See you there,"she told her parents as she and Bradley headed for the train. Gemini took the opportunity to detach herself from her own family and join her two friends, Balthasar just a step behind her.

"Dora, Gemini!"James called. The two girls stopped. "Can you keep an eye on Tracey to start with?" His daughter, who was also starting at Hogwarts that year, looked at them hopefully.

"Sure, James,"Nymphadora agreed. She gestured to the girl who came running over to join them. Then they all climbed on board.

Harry and Hermione found themselves standing near Ron, to the point that not talking to him would be rude. They wandered over. "Makes you feel old, doesn't it, having grandchildren at Hogwarts?"Hermione asked.

"It's a new experience for me,"Harry agreed.

"I guess having a child there as well makes it easier,"Ron commented.

Hermione coughed slightly. "I saw your last address. It was very good."

"Thank you."

James had been saying a quick farewell to his wife Emily and seemed to decide to come to his father's rescue. "Dad, Hermione, should we get onto the staff carriage?"

"Please,"Hermione agreed.

* * *

Two more pairs of eyes watched the three Potters head off to the carriage: A mother and son. "That's his son,"the boy noted.

"Yes, Philip,"his mother confirmed. "Our paths have crossed a few times."

"He was our head of house last year. But it's going to be Harry Potter again this year."

"Then you should be seeing quite a lot of him this year, shouldn't you?"

"Yes. And I won't miss this opportunity."

"Well…if you do, there'll be another opportunity, won't there?" The mother hesitated. "Philip, you are sure you want to do this, aren't you?"

"I'm sure, Mother,"Philip confirmed. "It's time Harry Potter got what's coming to him."


	2. Chapter 2: Welcome to Hogwarts

**Huge apologies: I meant to upload this yesterday but it slipped my mind. Thank you everyone for the reviews, favourites and follows. Bit of a short one but just getting a few more pieces in place...**

* * *

CHAPTER TWO: Welcome to Hogwarts

Nymphadora had detached herself from Bradley and Gemini on arriving at the feast hall, heading to join her housemates in Gryffindor while Bradley went to the Hufflepuff table and Gemini went to Slytherin. Balthasar and Tracey of course had gone with the other first years on the boats. Nymphadora sat with her friends Beverley Cardogan and Maxwell Jordan. She glanced across to the teachers' table where Harry, Hermione and James were sitting: All of them noticed her attention and smiled back.

Ernie Macmillan, the deputy head, led the new first years in for the sorting ceremony. Nymphadora listened to the first few names with little interest, applauding each of them politely and giving welcoming smiles to the new members of Gryffindor. Her ears pricked up at Tony Longbottom: That was Tracey's cousin, the son of Emily's brother Martin. And, of course, the grandson of Neville Longbottom, the Hogwarts headmaster.

"Ravenclaw!"announced the sorting hat.

"Andros Lupin!" The younger brother of Nymphadora's friend Flavia.

"Hufflepuff!"

"Balthasar Malfoy!"

"Slytherin!"

"Ron will not be happy about that,"Hermione whispered quietly to Harry. "He was hoping to get at least one grandchild in Gryffindor."

"Maybe Hugo will oblige,"Harry suggested.

A few more names followed and then it was Tracey's turn.

"Gryffindor!"

Nymphadora moved up slightly, gesturing for Nigel Peake, who was sat to her left, to do the same. Tracey sat down next to her. "Thanks, Auntie Dora." Nymphadora winced at having yet another one of her fellow pupils call her that.

The last few names were called and Neville welcomed the students before announcing the beginning of the feast. Chatter soon started up among the students. Nymphadora turned to her friends. "You haven't met Tracey, have you? She's Professor Potter Junior's daughter, Gemini's cousin."

"And her niece,"Tracey interjected.

"Half-niece,"Nymphadora corrected. "Tracey, that's Maxwell Jordan" – Maxwell stretched a hand across the table to the newcomer – "and this is Beverley." Beverley, sat on Nymphadora's right, reached behind her to shake the younger girl's hand.

"And I suppose I'd better introduce myself,"added the boy sat to Maxwell's right. "I'm Philip. Philip Nave." He offered Tracey his hand. "So you're another Potter, are you? Grandson of the great Harry Potter?" His tone was friendly but there was a slightly bitter edge to it.

Tracey didn't seem to have noticed as she eagerly took his hand. "That's right."

Nymphadora looked at the boy in slight confusion. "Sorry, I don't recall you from class."

"I'm a second year,"Philip explained. "So I haven't really had the benefit of your dad's education yet. Professor Souvren was substituting most of last year."

Nymphadora nodded. Both her parents had left Hogwarts to lead a guerilla war against the Ministry, opposing their decision to use the Purification Device, which could deprive people of their magic, on prisoners. They had backed down in the end and the device was now in full use on the inmates of Azkaban, with their magic only being restored once they were released.

"Well, you should get the benefit this year,"Beverley suggested with a certain forced joviality.

"I'm looking forward to it,"Philip agreed. There was something about the way he said it that made Nymphadora feel slightly uneasy.

* * *

Harry seemed to be going over their quarters in Gryffindor Tower with a fine tooth comb. Hermione sat on the bed, watching him with a certain amount of bemusement. "What are you doing?"

"Making sure there isn't any of James' stuff left behind from last year."

"We _were_ back in here at the end of the year."

"I know. Just checking." Harry sighed slightly. "I'm still going to need refresher courses to check what the students learned last year."

"I think Professor Souvren knew what he was doing. He did teach Rose and Hugo, after all."

"What about you and last year's Charms classes?"

"Well, I've got Lisa to fill me in." Lisa Weasley, formerly Lisa Turpin and now the wife of George Wealey, had stood in for Hermione as Charms professor during her absence. She had stayed on at the school afterwards as Astronomy professor.

"Do you think we'd have been better off staying here last year?"Harry mused.

"Well, using the Purification Device the way Ron planned was always going to be controversial. I guess at least we brought things to a head quickly."

"Still, I can't help thinking that if trouble comes up this year, we should have as little to do with it as possible."

Hermione gave him a quick kiss. "That sounds like a good idea."


	3. Chapter 3: New Class

**My thanks again for the review, favourites and follows!**

* * *

CHAPTER THREE: New Class

"What do you have up first?"Hermione asked.

Harry paused in the middle of dressing and gave a weary sigh. "Second year."

Hermione nodded."Oh, yes. The ones who started during our missing year at Hogwarts. Or was that our seventh year?"

"I'm going to have to work hard to build up a relationship with them. I abandoned them early in their first year. Those last few weeks at the end of the year when I came back to teach them, I think they resented me."

"I suppose you can't be popular with everyone. But I'm sure they'll be fine."

"Do you remember how many Defence Against the Dark Arts teachers we went through?"

"I remember some of them more fondly than others."

"Well, I was hoping that I would stay longer than any of them. But I've only managed one full year here so far."

Hermione smiled and helped him adjust his collar. "I think you're going to be fine."

* * *

An hour later, staring at the dismissive gazes of a selection of second year Gryffindors and Slytherins, Harry was beginning to doubt Hermione's words. It was time for a gamble. "I've been reviewing your work from last year,"he told them. "And I think you're ready to try some simple duelling." He tried not to hide his pleasure at the fact that most of them sat up and paid attention. "Are you familiar with the incantation for a disarming spell?"

Several hands shot up. He indicated one of the Gryffindor girls. "Expelliarmus,"she explained.

"Very good. Your name..?"

"Melinda Johnson, Professor."

"Okay, I want two volunteers to demonstrate it." He picked on two boys from Slytherin, David Bennett and Marcus Wyatt. They moved to the front of the class and faced each other with wands drawn.

" _Expelliarmus_!"David declared, disarming Marcus.

Marcus retrieved his wand. " _Expelliarmus_!"he declared in turn, disarming David.

Harry could see the class' attention beginning to wander again. "That spell's more useful than you might think,"he told them. "But let's try something else. One of you attacks me."

There was an uncertain muttering. Then one of the Gryffindor boys raised his hand. "I'll do it."

"Good. Your name?"

"Philip Nave." There was a slight edge to the boy's words, as though he expected Harry to know his name. He'd probably introduced himself the previous year. Harry resolved to remember the name this time.

"Okay, Philip. Cast any spell you like at me. I won't cast an offensive spell back at you, I'll just cast shields."

Philip stepped forward, wand drawn. " _Sectumsempra_." Harry was surprised at the choice, one that could do him a fair amount of harm if it hit home, but deflected it easily. " _Diffindo_." Harry again blocked. " _Confringo_!" Flames darted across Harry's shield. The potential danger of the spells was increasing. Oddly, so too was Philip's frustration.

" _Avada Kedavra_!"

To Harry's shock, a burst of green light shot out of Nave's wand towards him. He had no chance of blocking it, so instead he dived out of the way, letting the spell hit the wall behind him.

"No Unforgivables!"he snapped. Other classmembers drew their wands, worried things were getting out of hand.

Nave seemed to realise that too. " _Lumos Maximus_!"he shouted. For a moment, everyone in the class was blinded. When they could see, Nave was gone.

* * *

"A student trying to kill a teacher?"Hermione repeated. She, Harry, Neville, James and Ernie were in the headmaster's office, along with Lisa and the head of Slytherin, Marianne Lemuir.

"Doesn't happen very often,"Harry agreed.

"Unless it's you and Snape,"Neville commented. He glanced over at where the portrait of his predecessor three times removed hung. "No offence, Professor." Snape just glowered at him.

"Do you know Philip Nave well?"James asked.

"I don't know him at all,"Harry insisted. "I don't even remember him from last year. I take it he was here?"

Lisa nodded. "Reasonably gifted but largely unremarkable."

"Not anymore,"Ernie replied. "We've searched the castle and no sign of him. Either he left without anyone seeing or he's very good at hiding."

"He couldn't have learned the spells he cast from a first year lessons with me and Professor Souvren,"Harry noted. "Someone must have trained him out of school. Is he a pureblood?"

"Half-blood according to his record,"Neville replied. "But the information about his parents seems to be incomplete."

"Nice to know we're being thorough,"Hermione sighed.

"A student using an Unforgivable Curse in class. We need to go to the ministry. Harry, Ernie, you'd better come with me. You too, James."

"Don't think you're leaving me behind,"Hermione said warningly.

Neville knew better than to argue. "Marianne, keep an eye on the school while we're gone."

Everyone filed out of the office but Hermione lingered, her gaze focused on the portrait of Dumbledore. There was something in his eyes that bothered her. "Professor, do you know more about this than you're letting on?"

Dumbledore's expression gave nothing further away. "All I can tell you is that all will be revealed in time."

* * *

Nymphadora was sitting on a bench in a corridor, with Beverley and, somehow, Tracey, who had just followed them when they'd left the common room and who neither had had the heart to turn away. Bradley and Gemini approached, having obviously noticed the concerned look on Nymphadora's face. "What's wrong?"Bradley asked.

"Someone tried to kill Dad in class,"Nymphadora explained.

"Grandad?"Gemini asked. "But who? An intruder?"

Nymphadora shook her head. "It was one of the students."

"Philip Nave,"Tracey interjected, sounding a bit too excited. "He's in the second year. We spoke to him at the welcome feast."

"A second year Gryffindor?"Gemini deduced. "Why?"

"No-one knows,"Beverley explained. "He's disappeared. Hiding in the castle somewhere."

"So the teachers are looking for him, right?"Bradley asked. "And maybe the Head Boy and Girl and the prefects? They've got it covered?"

"What's up with you?"Gemini asked.

"I'm recognising the look on Nymphadora's face and I think I know what she'll say next."

Nymphadora nodded. "Let's look for him ourselves."


	4. Chapter 4: Disappearances

**Sorry, a bit tarry again. Thank you for the reviews, favourites and follows!**

* * *

CHAPTER FOUR: Disappearances

"We need to think about this,"Nymphadora told her friends. Bradley, Gemini and Beverley were all with her. Tracey had, to her great annoyance, been sent back to the Gryffindor common room.

"We need to think about not doing this,"Bradley argued.

Nymphadora ignored him. "If Nave's still in the castle, he must be hiding."

"A secret passage then?"Beverley asked.

Nymphadora nodded. "That would be my guess."

"But what then?"Gemini wondered. "I mean, is he going to try and kill Uncle Harry again?"

"Dad's out of the castle at the moment,"Nymphadora pointed out.

"Maybe Nave's trying to get out of the castle,"Bradley suggested.

"But the grounds will be patrolled. I can't see him getting very far." Nymphadora thought hard. "He was last seen near the DADA room. So he must have had a hiding place near there. Come on!"

* * *

Tracey sat down sulkily in the middle of the common room, folding her arms. "It's not fair,"she declared loudly to anyone within earshot.

Maxwell took the bait. "What's not fair?"

"They get to do all the fun stuff just because they're older. Auntie Dora sent me away up here."

"What fun stuff?"

"Going after that Philip, the one that attacked Grandad."

Maxwell was piecing together what she was saying and wasn't liking it. "Dora and the others are going after the boy that attacked Professor Potter?" Tracey nodded. Maxwell looked around the common room and picked out one of his fellow third years. "Nigel, keep an eye on her. Make sure she doesn't go anywhere alone." He dashed out the portal.

"Great,"Tracey complained. "Another older one who gets to have fun."

* * *

Nymphadora checked the wall of the corridor just outside the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom. "So, he must have gone through here somewhere,"she declared, more to convince herself than anyone else.

"Is there a spell to walk through walls?"Beverley asked.

"Probably. But he'd need to have somewhere to walk to."

"Well, maybe you should be looking for a loose stone or something."

"Why?"Gemini asked.

"I don't know. That's how people usually find secret passages, isn't it?"

"Could try blasting the wall?"Bradley suggested.

"We could,"Nymphadora agreed,"if we wanted to bring the whole castle down on us."

"Well, you suggest something then,"Bradley retorted grumpily.

Nymphadora thought for a moment then raised her wand. " _Alohomora_!" To everyone's astonishment, a door swung open.

Nymphadora led the way down the passage. Not a hundred yards down, they found Philip. "No, I'm not ready yet!"he shouted. " _Impedimenta_!" He flung the spell at them and they dived aside. Then Philip was gone down the passage with the rest of them in pursuit.

* * *

Harry, Hermione, James, Neville and Ernie were all in Ron's office at the ministry. "The Aurors did get reports of an Unforgivable Curse being used at Hogwarts,"Ron confirmed. "They were on the verge of sending you a memo asking you to investigate it."

"Looks like we can save you the trouble,"Neville remarked.

Ron looked at Harry. "Nothing happened to provoke this boy?"

"Nothing,"Harry verified. "The lesson was going normally. Philip hadn't spoken until I asked for a volunteer to demonstrate duelling. Then he seemed to get more and more aggressive."

"Nothing's happened between you in the past?"Ron checked.

"I barely taught him last year,"Harry answered.

"Could what happened last year, the civil war, be something to do with it?"Ernie asked.

"I'll ask Parvati if we received any letters of support from his family,"Ron noted,"but I don't recall the name Nave."

"Maybe we should concentrate on finding him before we find out why he did it,"James suggested. "I'm not sure if we need to involve the whole Order in this but I'll put the word out to a few trusted people."

"I'm surprised we need to do even that,"Hermione noted. "I don't know of a second year who could move around Hogwarts this freely since…"

"Us?"Harry suggested with a smile.

At that moment, a horse-shaped patronus came galloping into the office. "It's Angela's,"Ernie realised.

The voice of Ernie's wife, the Hogwarts flying instructor, came out of the patronus' mouth. "Nave has been detected trying to leave the castle. Other students are pursuing him."

"Dora?"Hermione wondered.

"Dora,"Harry agreed. They raced out, Ron, Neville and Ernie just behind.

"I'll get Rose and Scorpius and then follow you!"James called.

* * *

Nymphadora led the way out of the tunnel and saw Philip standing in the middle of the field outside Hogwarts. There were a few other students scattered around, all of them watching in astonishment as he made a complex series of wand movements. " _Temporus_!"he bellowed and a bright yellow glow surrounded him, almost hiding him from view.

Everyone stopped running except Nymphadora. She just kept on going, racing straight into the mysterious haze. When he realised she wasn't stopping, Bradley started running too. Beverley and Gemini made to follow but Maxwell appeared and stood in front of them. "Wait! We don't know what that is!"

Harry, Hermione, Ron, Neville and Ernie, who had apparated just outside the Hogwarts grounds, came running towards them. "Dora, all of you, get back!"Harry shouted. But he was too late.

There was a blinding flash, and then Philip, Nymphadora and Bradley were all gone.

* * *

Nymphadora found herself lying on her back in the grass, staring upwards. She looked round and caught sight of Bradley lying next to her. "Are you all right?"she asked.

He nodded. "I think so."

"Any sign of Philip?"

"Not from where I'm lying. But then I can't see much from where I'm lying."

"Perhaps we should try moving?"

"Yes, perhaps you should,"cut in another voice.

Nymphadora looked up and saw a rather unnerving-looking figure looming over them. His hair and robes were back and his expression was full of disapproval if not outright hostility. Most astonishing of all…she knew him. He was slightly younger than his portrait but still unmistakable. "Professor Snape?"

Snape raised an eyebrow. "You have me at a disadvantage, young lady. You appear to know me but I have no idea how you are." His eyes narrowed. "And I make it a point to know every students at Hogwarts. Despite your uniforms, I am certain that you are not among them."

Nymphadora struggled to her feet, helping Bradley up. "What year is this?"

Snape laughed. "What a curious question. Very well, I see no reason not to tell you. 1993."


	5. Chapter 5: Backtime

**Thank you for the review!**

* * *

CHAPTER FIVE: Backtime

Nymphadora eyed Snape uncertainly. Her parents had always acknowledged the key role he had played in the defeat of Voldemort, talking of the great risk he had taken and how it had ultimately cost him his life. She had seen his portrait in the headmaster's office many times. But she'd also heard stories that he was a bit, well, scary. And no-one she'd met had ever quite found it in them to contradict that idea.

"So, tell me,"Snape continued. "Exactly who are you and what are you doing here?" He smiled slightly as he nodded towards the gates. "Or would you like the Dementors to interrogate you instead?"

Nymphadora blanced. She looked at Bradley, who seemed to be thinking the same thing as her. What sort of answer or explanation could they give that would satisfy Snape?

"What have you got here, Severus?"cut in another voice. All of them turned to face the owner of it and Nymphadora could barely stifle a gasp at seeing someone she had never expected to see in the flesh. The Headmaster of Hogwarts of 1993, Professor Albus Dumbledore.

"I'm not quite sure, Headmaster,"Snape replied. "They're dressed as students but I don't recognise their faces. And I have a very good memory for faces."

Dumbledore looked the two newcomers over. For a moment, it felt to Nymphadora that he could see right through her, as though he knew exactly who she and Bradley were. "It's all right, Severus, I was expecting them."

Snape actually looked surprised. "You were?"

Dumbledore smiled. "Well, if I wasn't, I'm sure I will have been. These things can be a bit confusing at times."

"You're certain this isn't some trick of Black's?"

"If these are the best that Black or Voldemort can come up with to infiltrate Hogwarts, then it seems we were worrying about nothing." Dumbledore turned to the two young teenagers. "Come to my office, both of you."

* * *

The location of the headmaster's office hadn't changed in forty years. Dumbledore led the two youngsters there and got them to sit in front of the desk while he took a seat behind it. Then he looked at them both carefully. "Who exactly are you?"he asked.

"I thought you knew,"Nymphadora attempted.

"I know that you are not from here. I know that you have travelled in time, by magics that I'm not familiar with so I assume from the future."

"How do you know that?"Bradley asked.

Dumbledore smiled. "One doesn't get to my age without being sensitive to a few things. So?"

"We're from 2036,"Nymphadora explained. "I'm Nymphadora Potter, this is my friend Bradley Wood."

Dumbledore looked at her with sudden interest. "Your parents are..?"

"My father's Harry Potter. My mother's Hermione…Hermione Grainger you'd know her as."

"And they're still alive in your time?"Dumbledore persisted. "And Lord Voldemort..?"

"Is long gone."

Dumbledore smiled, almost to himself. "Oh, Harry. Well done,"he said quietly. Then a thought occurred to him. "They must have had you fairly late in life?"

"I was kind of an after-thought. They'd both been married before and had families, then they had me."

Dumbledore nodded. "Harry Potter and Hermione Grainger. I have had my eye on them for quite a while." He turned to Bradley. "And your family, Mr Wood?"

"My parents haven't been born yet,"Bradley replied. "My mother's a muggleborn. You'd know my father's parents though. Oliver Wood and Katie Bell?"

"Ah, yes, I know Oliver and Katie,"Dumbledore confirmed. "Both in Gryffindor. Oliver is in his last year, Katie is three years younger. Which just leaves one question: How did you come to be here?"

"It wasn't deliberate,"Nymphadora explained. "One of the other students cast the spell. Philip Nave. We kind of got dragged along with him."

"We're not sure where he went,"Bradley added.

"A friend of yours?"Dumbledore asked.

"Not really,"Nymphadora admitted. "He tried to kill my dad."

Dumbledore looked horrified. "Can it be..? Do you think he would try to kill Harry again? Here? The Harry of this era."

"He might."

"He was crazy enough to attack him in front of his whole class,"Bradley added.

"Attempting to interfere with established history. Even Voldemort would not be so insane." Dumbledore almost sounded afraid and that was perhaps the most frightening thing Nymphadora could imagine. "Is there something that happens this year that he might be trying to exploit? Something to do with the escape of Sirius Black?"

Nymphadora had heard of Sirius, of course. How he had spent over a decade in Azkaban, mistaken for a follower of Voldemort. Harry spoke of him fondly. But the Dumbledore of this time period mustn't know that he was innocent. If she let it slip and changed history… "There are things that happen this year,"she said carefully. "Things connected with Sirius Black's escape. But I'm not sure how much I can tell you."

Dumbledore nodded in understanding. "Yes, yes, quite. Could be very dangerous. I think the best thing to do is to enroll the two of you at Hogwarts so we can keep an eye on things. We can come up with a cover story for you." He looked at Bradley. "Your having the surname Wood probably wouldn't bother your grandfather too much." He turned to Nymphadora. "But your being a Potter…your father knows only a very little of his family's history. He has no real memories of his parents. If he suspected you were a family member… It might be best if you were to use a different name."

Nymphadora thought for a moment. Using her mother's name would cause as many questions, as would using the name of another family member like Malfoy or Longbottom… Then the answer hit her. "Call me Dora Cardogan."

* * *

Nymphadora and Bradley waited in the corridor outside the Great Hall. "So come on then, what don't you want Professor Dumbledore to know?"Bradley asked.

"Don't you know your history of the wars with Voldemort?"Nymphadora asked. Bradley shrugged and she sighed. "Sirius Black was a friend of my grandparents. Everyone thought it was him that betrayed them and my dad to Voldemort but it wasn't. It was another of their friends, Peter Pettigrew. This is the school year that my mum and dad and Professor Dumbledore find out that Sirius is innocent."

"Okay so…Nave can't have come here to help Black,"Bradley concluded. "Could he have come here to help Pettigrew?"

"I don't know. I don't think so. I wish I could remember all the stories that Mum and Dad told me."

Their attention was drawn to Dumbledore, who was addressing the hall. "I would like to introduce you to two new students who will be joining Hogwarts,"he stated loudly. "They have been home schooled until now but their families have decided they should now attend here, where they will be joining the third year. Thus, they will now be sorted into houses." The Sorting Hat, probably bemused at having been dragged out of the office so soon, was sat in his usual place. "Dora Cardogan."

Nymphadora walked into the hall and to the front, aware of every eye on her. Professor McGonagall, the deputy head and, Nymphadora knew, future head, her portrait to be located between Professors Snape and Slughorn, placed the hat on her head. She heard the Sorting Hat's voice in her head. "I've met you before. No, wait, I will have met you before. I can see the memory in your mind."

"Please don't give me away,"Nymphadora thought.

"No, I can see that this is all one of Dumbledore's bright ideas. I'll remember not to remember you in forty years' time. And I see no reason to make a different decision to the one I'll make then. Gryffindor!" it announced loudly.

Nymphadora got up and went to her future table, seeing the students clear a space for her near the other third years. She watched as Bradley was called into the hall and the Sorting Hat again repeated the decision it would make in the future, placing him in Hufflepuff. Four of the third years instantly set about welcoming him. To her shock, she recognised one of them as Ernie Macmillan, the future deputy head of Hogwarts. Another was Hannah Abbott, a member of the Order of the Phoenix in her time. The others, a boy with an upper class accent and a red-haired girl, she didn't recognise. With a lurch, she realised that with the forthcoming battles against Voldemort, and the later battles during the Death Eater resurgance in twenty years' time, there was a chance neither was alive in her time.

It was only then that she noticed the bespectacled boy sat across from her. "Hi,"he greeted her. "I'm Harry Potter." He gestured to the boy next to him and the girl sat opposite next to Nymphadora. "These are my friends, Ron and Hermione."


	6. Chapter 6: Unexpected Friendships

**Thank you for the review and follows! Another one I meant to post a few days back...**

* * *

CHAPTER SIX: Unexpected Friendships

Somehow Nymphadora had managed to make polite small-talk when faced with her parents at the same age she was now. She'd heard stories of the trio at school. Seeing the easy friendship that existed between them then, it was a marked contrast to the strained relationship in her time. But then, two friends falling in love with the same woman tended to do that.

It was when they were making their way from the great hall towards the Gryffindor common room that Ron turned to her. "So you know him, right?"he asked, nodding towards her father. "Harry Potter?"

"I've heard of him,"Nymphadora confirmed.

Ron nodded. "Everyone's heard of Harry,"he noted, with a slight weary tone.

"I've heard of you too,"Nymphadora added hastily.

Ron looked suddenly interested. "Yeah? What have you heard?"

"That you're Harry's friend,"Nymphadora attempted. Ron looked slightly crestfallen. "That you helped find the Philosopher's Stone and clear the way to the Chamber of Secrets. And your father works for the ministry and you've got lots of brothers."

Hermione looked at her curiously. "How do you know all that?"

"I do a lot of reading." Nymphadora's attention was drawn to two older boys a bit further along the crocodile of Gryffindors. One of them looked like Uncle George. Problem was, so did the other one. "Are they your brothers?"

"Fred and George,"Ron confirmed. "And at the front is my brother Percy, he's Head Boy. They're the only ones still here. Thank goodness,"he added under his breath.

"What about you?"Harry asked. "What about your family?"

"I've got brothers and sisters,"Nymphadora confirmed. "They're all a lot older than me though."

"Must be lonely?"Hermione suggested.

"Well, I've got lots of friends. Like Bradley."

"Maybe we'll be your friends too,"Harry said.

Nymphadora nodded. "I'd like that."

They headed through the portal into the Gryffindor common room. Nymphadora was tempted to stay with the trio but she found her gaze drawn to a young red-haired girl who had just sat down on one of the sofas. There was something oddly familiar about her. She went over and offered a hand. "I'm Dora Cardogan."

The girl accepted the hand. "Ginny Weasley."

With a start, Nymphadora realised who she was. She'd seen photos of her but they were all of her as an adult. She was her father's first wife, James, Albus and Lily's mother. And in about twenty-five years time, she was going to be murdered. "Pleased to met you,"she managed.

Ginny nodded. "I guess you haven't got many friends here. That boy that was sorted into Hufflepuff?"

"He's a friend, yes."

"My friend Luna's in Ravenclaw. It's not so bad, we still get to see each other quite a bit."

Nymphadora had to stop herself saying that she'd had friends in other houses before. "I hope so." She hesitated before adding,"I hope I get to see a bit more of you as well."

* * *

Nymphadora experimentally fluffed her pillows. She and the rest of the third year Gryffindor girls had changed for bed. However, it seemed some of them had no interest in sleep. "Have you seen Ron Weasley this year?"Lavender Brown asked. "He's turning into a real dream boat."

"Ron's nice,"Parvati Patil agreed. "Harry's turning out quite nice too."

Lavender shook her head. "Harry's a bit wet."

"What about Seamus?"

"I could go for Seamus."

Nymphadora turned to Hermione. "Are they always like this?"

"I'm afraid so,"Hermione sighed. "They've got used to talking as though I'm not here so they're probably going to do the same to you."

Nymphadora smiled. "So…do you fancy Harry or Ron?"

Hermione pulled a face. "Honestly, they're like brothers to me. Harry's a good friend. And Ron…is a bit annoying but he's a good friend too."

Nymphadora was surprised by the comment. She'd forgotten that this was long before her parents got together and even before her mother married Ron. Part of her had thought the feelings were always there. "Do you like anyone like that?"

"I don't think so. There's plenty of time for that later. Anyway, what about you and Bradley?"

The question threw Nymphadora even further. For a moment, it seemed like it was her mother, her mother of forty years hence, asking it. "Just friends."

Hermione nodded and looked with a frustrated sigh to where Lavender and Parvati were still gossiping. "I think we might need to practise our Silencing Charms."

* * *

Nymphadora met up with Bradley in the corridor outside the great hall and drew him into a corner away from prying eyes. "How are you going in Hufflepuff?"

"I'm sharing a dorm with Professor Macmillan."

"I'm sharing a dorm with my mum!" A thought struck her. "Who was the other boy I saw you talking with last night?"

"Justin Finch-Fletchley."

"Justin…" Nymphadora tried to place the name.

"Is something wrong?"Bradley checked.

"Yes! It wasn't so bad with Dumbledore and Snape and McGonagall, they're adults. But these people are my parents' age, they should still be around in our time. Instead, lots of them are dead. Next year, Voldemort returns. Uncle George's brother, Uncle Fred, he dies. So does Lavender, the girl in my dorm. And Ginny, Dad's first wife, she dies later on. I think that Justin dies around the same time and that girl with him…"

"Susan?"

"Susan Bones, yes, her too."

Bradley looked at her cautiously. "You're not going to try and change things, are you? Dumbledore thought that was dangerous."

"It just doesn't seem fair."

"I know. But…if You-Know-Who doesn't come back next year, it happen at another time and things could be worse. The future's not so bad. We just have to find Nave and stop him and then we can get back there."

Nymphadora nodded. "Stop Nave."


	7. Chapter 7: Back to Class

**Thank you for the review!**

* * *

CHAPTER SEVEN: Back to Class

"So what have you got up first?"Bradley asked.

Nymphadora took out her time table and consulted it. "Care of Magical Creatures with…Professor Hagrid."

"Hagrid?"Bradley repeated. "As in the guy that's still there in our time?"

"Looks like it. Mum and Dad always said that he'd been around since they were students. He was given that hut for life when he retired."

"And he used to be a professor?"

"Apparently so."

"Dora, do you want to walk with us?"asked Harry as he suddenly appeared with Ron and Hermione. He paused as he noticed Bradley. "Oh, hi. I'm Harry."

"Yeah, I know who you are,"Bradley confirmed. He noticed Harry's awkward look. "Dora told me,"he added hastily. "And you're Ron and Hermione, right?"

"Yeah. Wotcha,"greeted Ron.

"Pleased to meet you,"Hermione added somewhat formally, with just the hint of a scowl.

Bradley suddenly felt like he was intruding. "Well, I've got Herbology,"he noted,"so I'd better get going. See you later!" He made a quick exit.

"So what's this Professor Hagrid like then?"Dora asked as they headed towards the exit.

"He's great,"Harry replied.

"A really nice chap,"Ron agreed.

"But we don't really know what he's like as a teacher,"Hermione felt the need to add.

"It's his first lesson,"Ron admitted.

Nymphadora had a sudden uneasy feeling. "Great."

* * *

Philip crouched in the trees in the grounds of Hogwarts. It hadn't taken him long to confirm that he had made it back to the time period he'd been aiming for. A quick scout had allowed him to see all the faces that his mother and her friends had told him to watch out for, people who were either dead or much older in his own time. But as he hid, he saw something he wasn't expecting. The Potter girl, the one who had tried to stop his escape. Not only was she there but she was with Harry Potter himself and his two friends, chatting away to them in a friendly manner.

Philip stayed in hiding but began to follow them. There may be an opportunity earlier than he'd expected.

* * *

Bradley was still slightly bewildered at finding himself sat at a table with Ernie, Hannah and Justin, but was doing his best to fit in with them. They were currently looking after puffapods, being careful not to let the beans touch anything and prematurely germinate. "So are you still seeing much of that girl that arrived with you?"Ernie asked.

"Quite a bit,"Bradley confirmed. "Is that okay?"

"There's no rules against it,"Hannah replied.

"She seems to be friends with Harry Potter,"Ernie noted.

"And the other two,"Bradley agreed. "Ron and Hermione."

Hannah nodded. "It'd take a lot to break up those three."

Bradley had a brief flashback to the civil war from his time, and the fierce duel between Harry and Ron that he had witnessed at the Ministry of Magic, but decided not to tell them about that. "You friends with them?"

"I wouldn't go that far,"Ernie replied, looking suddenly awkward.

Bradley found himself wondering what other people had thought of Nymphadora's parents back then. "Harry and Hermione seem quite close."

Justin gave a small smile. "Yes, they noticed that."

Bradley looked quizzically at Ernie and Hannah. "Harry and I had a disagreement last year,"Ernie admitted.

"I got frozen by a basilisk,"Justin added.

Bradley searched his mind for the brief history recap Nymphadora had given him. "I heard something about that. The Chamber of Secrets, right?"

"I got it into my head that Harry was behind it,"Ernie admitted.

" _We_ did,"Hannah corrected. "But when Hermione was hurt as well, we knew Harry wouldn't hurt her."

"I'll remember that,"Bradley noted, wondering if he'd ever have the opportunity to bring up the conversation with Professor Macmillan in his own time.

"Bit of a strange girl,"Ernie added. "She's taken a lot of electives, she's in Muggle Studies with me. There are times when it seems like she's in two places at the same time."

* * *

Nymphadora hadn't quite known what to expect when Hagrid had announced they'd be studying hippogriffs. But what had happened was her father being volunteered to approach the example that Hagrid had introduced as Buckbeak, a name that she was sure was significant but the details escaped her. "Yer walk towards him and yer bow and yer wait. If he bows back, then yer can touch him,"Hagrid had promised.

Nymphadora noticed Ron and Hermione had unconsciously taken each other's hands as Harry approached. It was another reminder of how far in the future her parents getting together actually was. "Do you think he'll be all right?"she asked, a part of her worrying that the time travellers' presence had changed things.

"Course, he's Harry,"Ron answered in a tone that wasn't entirely confident. Hermione just made a curious yelping sound that was probably meant to be agreement.

Philip also watched events from the bushes. He could take Harry out with a Killing Curse but it had to be a clean casting. If he missed, he wouldn't get another chance. He glanced across at Nymphadora, getting to spend time with her parents. He knew his own mother would be at Hogwarts, it was tempting to see her as a girl. But it risked the mission. That was the important thing.

Harry's exchange with Buckbeak seemed to have gone well; he was being allowed to mount the hippogriff. This was Philip's chance: It didn't matter if he hit Potter or Buckbeak once they were airborne, the fall would likely kill Harry anyway. But to his frustration, the creature was moving too fast for him to hit. He was forced to wait again.

He tried to peer round the group of students to pick out Harry when he landed. But then another boy approached Buckbeak. Philip recognised him from his research: Draco Malfoy. In around twenty-five years' time, he would lose his magic in the first use of the Purification Device. But at this point he was just an arrogant pureblood…and it showed.

"You're not dangerous at all, are you?"he sneered. "You ugly great brute."

At which point, all hell broke loose. Buckbeak lunged at Malfoy, cutting his arm. There were arguments among the students, mostly consisting of the Gryffindors blaming Draco and the Slytherins saying Buckbeak should be put down, and Hagrid dismissing the class so he could take Draco to sickbay.

Nymphadora looked at the injured boy who would become her sister's father-in-law. "Will _he_ be all right?"she asked the others.

"More's the pity,"Ron noted.

"It's Hagrid I'm worried about,"Hermione retorted.

Harry nodded. "It'd be just like Malfoy to try and take his job away."

Nymphadora wanted to tell them Hagrid would be at the school for many years but that would just invite too many questions. So she kept quiet.

Philip made one last attempt to find a clear shot at Potter but the group were already moving back towards the school. Frustrated, he slipped away into the woods.


	8. Chapter 8: The Embodiment of Fear

**Thank you for the reviews, follows and favourite! Been a bit tardy again, sorry.**

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CHAPTER EIGHT: The Embodiment of Fear

"So, are things going the way they're meant to?"Bradley asked Nymphadora as the two of them walked in the Hogwarts grounds.

Nymphadora sighed in frustration. "I don't know! I don't know everything my parents did at school, just the important stuff."

"But none of the important stuff has changed yet?"

"I don't think so."

"And neither of us has seen Nave?"

"You know we haven't."

Bradley mulled things over. "Dora, have you thought about what we're going to do if we don't find him? I mean, it's not like we've really got anywhere to go in this time period. And we're only a couple of years away from the Second Wizarding War, I don't want to be around for that. Didn't Hogwarts get attacked during the war?"

"A couple of times." Nymphadora sighed. "I don't know, I guess we just have to rely on Dumbledore to sort things out for us."

"And he doesn't even know who really sold out your grandparents yet."

As they reached the edge of the grounds, suddenly a group of dark-robed figures appeared in front of them. "Dementors,"Nymphadora said quietly.

Bradley swallowed hard. In their time, the Ministry hadn't used Dementors for nearly forty years. It was like suddenly seeing a guillotine in use. "What do we do?"

"Just back away slowly." But then one of the Dementors reached out to her. Nymphadora saw a flash of green light and a falling body. Albus, her brother. Killed in the grounds of Hogwarts years from now, during the attack by the True Way. The memory almost consumed her until she couldn't think of anything else.

"Get back!"snapped an authoritarian voice. Remus Lupin, Defence Against the Dark Arts professor, stepped up alongside them, his gaze fixed on the Dementors. When they failed to respond immediately, he sent a white light spinning towards them from his wand, causing them to back off. "These are students. They are not for you."

Seeming almost resentful, the Dementors floated away.

Nymphadora looked with some awkwardness at the man she knew was her friend Flavia's grandfather. "Thank you."

Remus gave a slight smile. "Remind me to cover what to do when faced with a Dementor in our next lesson."

* * *

Nymphadora slowly made her way back to the castle where she stumbled upon Hermione sitting alone in a corridor. It was still an odd experience, seeing her mother the same age as her, another teenage girl with the same fears and worries that she experienced. But, odd as it might seem, they were friends, so she approached her. "Are Harry and Ron not around?"she asked.

Hermione gave a slight grimace. "We're not exactly talking at the moment."

Nymphadora was surprised by the news: She'd always thought the trio were inseparable at school and it definitely didn't match her own experience of her parents. "Why not?"

"Quidditch. And Scabbers." Hermione noticed Nymphadora's confused expression. "Ron's rat has gone missing. He's convinced that my cat, Crookshanks, ate him."

Nymphadora sat down next to her but her mind was racing. She was sure there was something important about this, something she'd forgotten. "Ron's rat?"

Hermione nodded. "Been in the family for years, apparently. Why?"

"I'm not sure." Nymphadora shook her head. It would come to her no doubt. "We're still friends though, aren't we?"

Hermioned smiled. "Yes, I'm glad of that. And we've still got Harry playing Quidditch to enjoy…"

* * *

Bradley had been looking forward to the Gryffindor v Ravenclaw match. The chance to see his grandfather play when he was not only in his prime but just getting started in his career was something he hadn't anticipated. What's more, his grandfather had often mentioned that it was this year, his last as captain and his last at Hogwarts, that he'd led Gryffindor to win the Quidditch Cup. He'd seen the Gryffindor v Hufflepuff match shortly after he and Nymphadora had arrived but it had been something of a disappointment, with the biggest contribution being made by a cloud of Dementors who had knocked Harry off his broom.

Ernie was standing near Bradley in the stands and noticed the Gryffindor rosetta on his tunic. "Gryffindor supporter?"he asked with some reproach.

"My dad was in Gryffindor,"Bradley explained. He hoped that Ernie wouldn't ask any further questions, since it might be difficult to explain that his father wouldn't be born for another ten years. Fortunately, Ernie seemed to accept the explanation with a grunt.

Nymphadora was in the Gryffindor stand with Hermione and Ron, who had managed to put their differences aside enough to be standing within shouting distance. She gave a slight smile as she recognised her father's opponent as Cho Chang, another future member of the Order of the Phoenix who her mother had always suspected of having a crush on her father. "Go on, Harry!"she called and Ron and Hermione echoed the call.

Bradley watched with excitement as Oliver repelled the Ravenclaw attacks. "Good save…Oliver!" He only just managed to avoid calling him Grandad. That really would have caused Ernie and Justin to give him funny looks.

To Bradley's disappointment, Oliver let in a few goals after that, leaving Gryffindor 80-30 ahead. Harry and Cho were both going for the snitch when a group of Dementors appeared on the ground below them. Harry seemed to cast some sort of spell similar to the one Lupin had cast earlier, knocking them all down, then caught the snitch.

Nymphadora found herself caught up in a crowd of Gryffindors as they surged onto the pitch to congratulate their team. A few Hufflepuffs had joined in so Bradley managed to leap the barriers to join them. "Good game,"he told his grandfather, who gave a nod of acknowledgement while probably wondering who Bradley was.

Nymphadora heard Lupin saying something about how the Dementors weren't really Dementors and looked over to see four Slytherins shrugging off their disguise. She nudged Hermione. "That's Draco Malfoy. Who are the others?"

Hermione looked them over. "Crabbe and Goyle…and that's Marcus Flint, the Slytherin Captain."

Nymphadora dragged up the three names from her memory. All were dead in her time, Crabbe and Goyle in just a few years at the Battle of Hogwarts, Flint a decade or so after that in the Battle of Malfoy Mansion. She wondered if they'd change their ways if she told them that. Probably not. Anyway, she couldn't change history.

Bradley came over to her. "Grandad was great,"he remarked before quickly checking no-one was listening. Then he noticed Nymphadora's thoughtful expression. "What's up?"

"That spell that…" – she also looked around to make sure no-one was in earshot – "…that Dad cast, the one you use against Dementors…"

"Yeah, what about it?"

Nymphadora sighed. "I don't know. But there's something. Something we need to remember."


	9. Chapter 9: Those Left Behind

**Thank you for the reviews! (And I meant to say, to anyone wondering who Phillip's mother, is you _will_ find out. Just not yet.)**

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CHAPTER NINE: Those Left Behind

 _Present Day_

Harry stood in the Hogwarts grounds, staring at the spot where he'd last seen his youngest child. Hermione came up behind him and gently put her arms round him. "You're here again,"she pointed out.

"I just think if I stare at it long enough then she'll suddenly appear again. But she won't. It's been months."

"She wouldn't necessarily appear here,"Hermione pointed out. "If we're right about what's happened to them, then they could appear anywhere, at any time. We've had experience of travelling to the past, remember?"

"Yes but with us it was only a few hours and we came back the long way round. I don't fancy Nymphadora being an old woman the next time I see her."

James came walking across the grass towards them. "Dad, Hermione."

Harry looked at him with a certain amount of suspicion. "You've spoken to the Order?"

"Yes and they agree with me. Nymphadora and Bradley are stuck in the past. A full-scale search in this time period would be pointless."

"I'll talk to them,"Harry decided angrily, making to push past James.

James caught his arm. "You stepped down as leader of the Order for a reason, remember? You knew you'd made some wrong decisions, you trusted me to make the right ones. That's what I'm doing. I want to help Dora as much as anyone but we need to find out the right way of doing that, not go chasing off on one."

"I think Dumbledore knows something,"Hermione noted.

Harry looked at her in surprise. "What makes you say that?"

"I don't know. It's just the way he's been ever since this all started, since Nave first tried to kill you."

Harry looked back at James. "I trust you have no objection to questioning Dumbledore?"

"No, I'm right behind you."

* * *

Neville was already at his desk when Harry, Hermione and James came walking into the headmaster's office. "Harry, Hermione, James, what's going on?"

"We want to talk to one of your predecessors,"Harry replied.

Neville got up and stood to one side, giving them unrestricted access to the portraits behind him. Harry was immediately focused on the portrait of Dumbledore. The old man nodded slowly. "Yes. I suspected you'd be talking to me sooner or later. The one secret I have yet to divulge to you."

"Do you know where Nymphadora and Bradley are?"Hermione asked.

"I have some insight into it, yes."

"Then why haven't you said something?"James demanded.

"I made some choices a long time ago. As with a lot of choices I've made over the years, I wasn't sure if they were right. I hope they were. I hope things will turn out for the best."

"We need answers, not vague guilt,"Harry replied.

"You already have the answers, Harry,"Dumbledore told him. "You too, Hermione…and even you, Neville. Think back to your third year."

"The year Sirius Black escaped from Azkaban,"Neville recalled.

"The year we met Peter Pettigrew,"Hermione added.

"There was more,"Dumbledore replied. "There were two new students that year. The story we gave was that they had been home schooled. One of them was sorted into Gryffindor. She became your friend."

"Yes,"Harry agreed. "Her name was…Dora." He gaped in astonishment. "It was her. Nymphadora. Her and Bradley, they were there with us in third year."

"Yes,"Dumbledore confirmed. "I wanted to preserve the future so I tampered with your memories. I didn't remove anything or change anything, I simply made it so you wouldn't think too hard about certain things. If you had realised that Nymphadora was destined to travel back in time, you might have done things differently."

"So they're all right, her and Bradley?"James persisted. "They're going to end up back here? I mean, they didn't stay with you all the way through school or anything?"

Dumbledore's reply failed to give the reassurance needed. "They will be all right...if all goes according to plan."

* * *

Rose entered Ron's office to find him looking more than a little frustrated. He seemed to have just finished a conversation over his desk's floo-link and it apparently hadn't gone well. "What's wrong?"she asked.

"I still can't get Nave's files unsealed."

"What?" Rose was astonished. "But it's been months! He used an Unforgiveable, he's abducted two minors…"

"The Wizengamot have argued that that wasn't deliberate…and they're probably right."

"I'll get the DMLE to talk to them again."

"It can't hurt, I guess. Seems the Wizengamot want to show me what I can and can't do. A lot of them still aren't happy about that ministerial pardon I gave to Harry and the others."

Rose sighed. "Including me."

Ron looked at her kindly. "Yeah, well, what else was I going to do? Thing is I don't think they'd be doing this unless there was someone leaning on them."

"That would have to be someone from one of the old wizarding families, right? I don't remember a pureblood family called Nave."

"He could be descended in the female line,"Ron pointed out. "Unfortunately, we won't know unless we can get those files."

* * *

Beverley found Gemini and Tracey sitting in one of the Hogwarts corridors. The cousins had both been unusually quiet ever since Nymphadora and Bradley had disappeared. Beverley missed them as well but she was doing her best to stay upbeat. They had got out of trickier situations after all. "Those aren't very happy faces,"she told them.

Gemini managed a smile but it wasn't a very convincing one. "I guess we don't have much to be happy about at the moment."

"Well, your Uncle Harry's trying to look back through the historical records for any sign of them. I'm sure wherever they ended up they'll be safe. Can't you find anything else to do other than sit around moping?"

"I did tell Balthasar I'd help him with his homework,"Gemini admitted. "And he's probably missing Dora too."

"I've done mine,"Tracey replied. "Mum always taught us to do things quickly."

"My mum tried to do the same. We didn't listen."

Beverley smiled. "Well, Tracey, how do you feel about going to watch the Quidditch practise?"

Tracey gave a smile and a nod. They said goodbye to Gemini and headed towards the pitch where the Gryffindor team was assembling. However, when they got there, the team didn't seem to be doing any practising. They were simply huddled in the centre of the pitch. "Is something wrong?"Beverley asked.

Sixth year Meg Best, who had been selected as captain after her predecesor David Barrett had left the previous year, looked at her awkwardly. "We're just discussing pulling out of the championship. It's not much fun when one of your team is missing."

Beverley's classmate Amanda Willis, who had tried out for Chaser after years of reminding everyone her father had once been Gryffindor captain, nodded. "I was really looking forward to playing with Dora this year."

"She could have been a great Seeker one day,"agreed fifth year Manuel Peregrine, who currently held that post. "I was thinking she'd take over from me."

"She's not dead!"Tracey pointed out. "You can't do this!"

"Tracey's right,"Beverley agreed. "Nymphadora would hate it if you didn't play because of her. She'd want to come back and find you'd won the championship." She looked around at the doubtful faces. "Look, if you pull out, I'll put a team together myself. And I can't even play."

Meg gave her a smile. "Okay, third year, we'll put you in our reserves. We're still playing…and we'll hope Dora comes back soon."


	10. Chapter 10: Piecing It Together

**Thank you for the follows and favourite!**

* * *

CHAPTER TEN: Piecing It Together

Nymphadora was forced to wonder if hanging around in corridors looking glum was something her parents did often. This time it was Harry. He was clutching a copy of the Daily Prophet and staring intently at it. Nymphadora came closer and he looked up sharply, realising for the first time that he wasn't alone. For a moment, he looked like he was going to hide it from her, then he turned the paper round and gestured to the mug shot that had adorned so many papers recently. "Sirius Black,"he said simply.

Nymphadora nodded. "They're worried he might come here. That's why all the Dementors are around."

Harry hesitated, as though unsure how much he wanted to share with her. "He killed my parents,"he said at last.

"I thought Lord Voldemort killed your parents?" It was a well-known fact at the time, it seemed a safe thing to say.

Harry looked at her in surprise anyway. "I don't hear many people using that name."

"My parents taught me to. They said you shouldn't be scared of a name."

"That sounds like good advice. I wish my parents had told me things like that." Harry seemed to be lost in thought for a moment before remembering her original question. "Black set it all up. He told Voldemort where to find them."

"Are you sure it was Black?"Nymphadora pressed.

"Heard it from the Minister himself."

Nymphadora knew she was on dodgy ground. She couldn't interfere with history. But then, this was the year Harry learned the truth about Sirius. Maybe he learned it from her? "Why do you think Black escaped now?"

"I don't know. Does it matter? Maybe he's heard stories about me or about Voldemort returning. He was his right hand man."

"Are you sure about that? Does anyone else who followed Voldemort say so?"

Harry glared at her. "I haven't exactly asked them."

"Well, was he marked?"

Harry looked at her in confusion. "Marked?"

Nymphadora sighed. Obviously Harry didn't know about that yet. She wasn't even sure if the Ministry knew about it. "All Voldemort's followers had a mark to identify them."

"Well, there you are then. That's how they know Black was one of them."

Nymphadora gave up. It would take more than her to talk him round but maybe she'd helped. "Well, I hope you get the answers you want."

Harry nodded and got up. "I'm due at Quidditch practise. You want to come along?"

"Yeah. I'd like that."

* * *

Bradley cautiously made his way down to the Quidditch training pitch. There, he saw his grandfather giving a pep-talk to the rest of the team. Bradley had learned their names over the years Oliver had been telling him about the year: The Weasley twins, Alicia Spinnet, Angelina Johnson (who would go on to be the grandmother of his friend Maxwell)…and, of course, his own grandmother, Katie Bell. Oliver stopped on realising he had an audience and looked at Bradley suspiciously. There hadn't been many times when Bradley had wished he'd followed his father's family into Gryffindor but wearing their colours would probably do him a lot of help at that moment.

"What do you want?"Oliver asked, clearly have to make an effort to keep his tone mild.

"I wanted to watch you practise,"Bradley replied.

"Why?"came the swift answer.

Bradley had been expecting the question and tried to come up with an answer that would satisfy this young version of his grandfather. "Because they say you're good. They say when you leave school you're going to turn professional."

"I'm thinking about it,"Oliver confirmed.

"Oh yes, our Oliver will soon be part of the England XI,"Fred agreed.

"World XI,"George amended.

Oliver scowled slightly, some of his good mood evaporating. "You're not here to spy then?"

"Who for?"Bradley asked. "You've already played Huffelpuff. I'm not going to go running to Marcus Flint to tell him your tactics, am I?"

"Let him stay, Oliver,"Katie suggested.

"Yeah, he looks harmless,"Angelina agreed.

Oliver gave a brief snort and then nodded. At that moment, his attention was drawn to Harry and Nymphadora approaching. "You're late, Potter."

"Yeah, sorry, I had things on my mind,"Harry admitted.

Oliver nodded, seeming to understand. "Okay, well, gather round. I've had a few thoughts on our next tactic…"

Nymphadora gestured for Bradley to follow her up into the stands. "You wanted to spend time with him?"

"Well…I guess I wanted to be around family. I'm not sure I'm going to see the grown-up version of Grandad again. If we're stuck here, I could end up older than my parents."

"We'll get back once we've stopped Nave,"Nymphadora promised him.

Bradley didn't seem entirely convinced by the reassurance but gestured to the training session. "It's good seeing them when they were young though, isn't it?"

"Yeah. It's good,"Nymphadora agreed. "But I still intend to make sure our versions of them are there waiting for us."


	11. Chapter 11: Finding Sources

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CHAPTER ELEVEN: Finding Sources

Nymphadora walked into the Gryffindor common room, which was nearly empty of people her age. It was Hogsmeade weekend and most of the third years and above were down in the village with their permission slips. Problem was, her own parents were pupils in her year who had trouble leaving the castle themselves, so there wasn't really anyone to sign her slip.

Ginny was there of course, sat at one of the tables with another girl. Nymphadora realised with a start that it was Luna Lovegood, who would go on to be the wife of her headmaster and the mother of her sister-in-law Emily. Luna turned to her with a wide-eyed look. "Hello."

"Dora, this is my friend Luna,"Ginny introduced. "Luna, this is Dora Cardogan."

Nymphadora shook Luna's hand. "You're in Ravenclaw?"

"Is that a problem?"Ginny asked, sounding quite challenging.

"No, no,"Nymphadora assured her hastily. "I've got a friend in another house myself. But I wasn't sure if I could invite him in here. I haven't seen many people from other houses in the common room."

"I only come when it's quiet,"Luna explained. "It's nicer like that."

"I'm surprised you're not off with Harry,"Ginny commented. "You seem quite close to him."

Nymphadora looked closely at Ginny. This was, after all, the girl that her father had loved before her mother. She'd been watching them to see some sign of it…and she could see it now in Ginny's eyes, a melancholy touch. "Do you know him?"

"My brother does. I've seen him a few times." Ginny hesitated. "We spent a bit of time together last year. I thought maybe we were becoming friends but he's barely spoken to me this year."

"Maybe you could try speaking to him,"Nymphadora suggested.

Ginny gave a slight smile. "You sound like Hermione. Maybe one day." She seemed to mist up a little. "Excuse me a moment." She headed towards the dormitory.

"She does like him a lot,"Luna noted.

Nymphadora nodded. "I know."

"I suppose you know how it all works out, coming from the future."

Nymphadora started. Luna's big eyes continued to regard her in a polite manner but gave no sign of viewing her as something extraordinary. "What makes you say that?"

"You're covered in snipexes. That could only have happened if you're from the future."

Nymphadora suspected that a request for an explanation would be futile so she didn't bother. "Are you going to tell anyone?"

"It's not really their business, is it? So, are we friends in the future?"

Nymphadora wasn't quite sure how to answer the question. "We're not the same age then."

"Oh yes. That's a shame."

"I could look you up though when I get back there, remind you of this."

Luna smiled politely. "If you could. That would be nice."

* * *

Bradley was sitting in Divination. He had to admit that no-one seemed to be taking the subject or its professor seriously. Professor Trelawney was long retired by his time but he'd heard a story that she had predicted the final battle between Harry and Voldemort. He'd been looking forward to seeing her at work first hand. But the enthusiasm really wasn't shared by anyone around him. Even Ernie was slumped next to him looking bored. "I'm thinking of giving this up,"he admitted quietly. "No-one around here's really learning anything."

"But…" Bradley floundered somewhat, wondering what he could say without revealing the future. "Isn't Professor Trelawney meant to be descended from a great seer?"

"Well if she is, the gift skipped a few generations."

Bradley wasn't ready to give up. "Professor?"he asked loudly.

Trelawney looked round in an enigmatic manner. "Did I hear my name spoken?"

"Yes, that was me. I was just wondering whether you can see anything in my future?"

"In yours?" Trelawney studied him carefully. "You have come a long way. A long and arduous journey."

Bradley nodded eagerly. "Yes, yes, that's right."

She gave him a sorrowful look. "My boy, this journey may end in disaster. It is possible you will not see the next century."

Bradley sighed, disappointed. "I already have,"he muttered quietly.


	12. Chapter 12: Getting to the Truth

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CHAPTER TWELVE: Getting to the Truth

 _Present Day_

Rose regarded the subject of the interrogation she was conducting as evenly as possible. Theodore Nott. She and Scorpius had been assigned the task of questioning him as soon as his name had come up in Philip Nave's file. Unfortunately, the chances of him telling them anything that they didn't already know, much less something actually useful, seemed pretty remote.

"We understand Philip Nave has been living with you prior to his recent disappearance,"Rose observed.

"Not to mention his recent attack on Harry Potter,"Scorpius added.

Nott oozed confidence, his sense of privilege making him feel invulnerable. There had been rumours that he'd fought for Voldemort in the last battle of the Second Wizarding War but nothing had ever been proven. He'd stayed away from the Death Eaters when Rodolfus Lestrange had revived them. But it was hard not to feel like he wished they'd succeeded. "Philip Nave's my stepson,"he explained. "Well, kind of. I never married his mother but she lived with me."

"For how long?"Scorpius asked.

"Since he was a small child. I'd known her a long time. She was on her own. The father had abandoned her, her own family had abandoned her, everyone saw her as an embarrassment."

"And you took pity on her?"Rose asked.

Nott smirked. "And she was ever so grateful."

"When did you last see Philip's mother?"Scorpius asked.

"The day Philip started at Hogwarts. She took him to catch the express, she never came back."

"You didn't think that was unusual?"

"She's a free agent, she does what she pleases. And I expect she did."

Rose noticed Parvati Patel, Deputy Minister of Magic, waiting outside the office. "Carry on without me," she told her husband before heading out into the corridor.

"What have you found out?"Parvati asked.

"Not enough to help us find Nave or his mother,"Rose admitted. "Just enough to make me want to scrub myself clean. I would really like to use Verisaterum on him."

"Unfortunately, we don't have permission for that. Keep on questioning him as long as possible. He might let something slip."

"Do we have anything else to go on?"

"Yes. Your father's looking into it."

* * *

James felt incredibly self-conscious as he approached the Minister of Magic's office. There was a certain unofficial nature to his position as leader of the Order of the Phoenix but nevertheless he still wasn't quite used to the responsibilities he'd taken on. No-one was yet sure of the true story behind Nave's attack on his father, nor on whether or not it was part of something bigger. James might be about to find out. And then he'd be expected to do something about it.

Ron and Neville were both waiting for him in the office. Ron waved him into a seat. "Sit down, James."

Having his uncle and his father-in-law treat him as if he was an equal was both flattering and rather nerve-wracking. James looked from one to the other. "Minister, Headmaster. What's all this about?"

"You remember what I told you about Nave's school records?"Neville asked him. "He was listed as a half-blood but we didn't have any details of his parents?"

James nodded. "Do you know where the information came from?"

"It came from the ministry,"Ron replied.

Neville nodded in confirmation. "We checked the ministry records. They gave us details of Nave's birth."

"His mother is officially listed as a squib from a pureblood family,"Ron explained. "But it's a bit more complicated than that. She refused to name the father but stated that he was a half-blood."

"And you just believed her?"James asked.

"She was believed because she took an Unbreakable Vow that she had given no false information."

James was momentarily thrown. Nave's mother would have to have been very certain in order to risk that. "Okay, yeah, that'd do it."

"But we found something else out when we finally got access to Nave's file,"Ron continued. "The name of Nave's mother." He handed James a slip of paper.

James took the parchment and felt his stomach lurch as he read the name there and realised the implications. "Does my dad know?"

"He hasn't heard from us,"Neville replied.

James nodded. "I'll tell him."

* * *

If James had felt nervous about meeting Ron and Neville, the fact that he now had to share what he'd learned with his father and stepmother filled him with even more trepidation. He thought of Nymphadora, lost in the past along with Nave. Did she know who he was? He wished he could be there for her, if and when she found out the whole story. It was a piece of news that was likely to leave her as shocked as him.

He knocked on the door of Harry and Hermione's quarters before entering. Both looked at him expectantly. They knew of his visit to the Ministry, knew he was likely to have got information from Nave's files. They just didn't know what it might be.

"Well?"Harry asked bluntly.

Hermione as ever was more loquacious. "What have you found out? Do you know why Nave did what he did?"

"Not exactly,"James replied. "But we've found out some details that have given us some ideas."

"Like what?"Harry persisted.

"Like the name of his mother."

"It's someone we know?"Hermione asked.

"Who?"Harry demanded.

James didn't tell him. Instead, he handed over the parchment.

Harry went white as he read it. Hermione came to his side and read it as well, then looked at Harry in shock. "You realise who this makes his father?"Harry asked at last.

James nodded. "I think we've all realised that."


	13. Chapter 13: The Ties That Bind Us

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CHAPTER THIRTEEN: The Ties That Bind Us

Nymphadora found herself being bundled out of the dorm in the middle of the night, along with seven years' worth of grumbling Gryffindors. Hermione was alongside her and Nymphadora looked at her for an explanation. "Do you know what's going on?"

Hermione could only shrug.

When they arrived in the common room, they found Professor McGonagall engaged in an argument with Percy Weasley. Harry and Ron were standing nearby along with all the other boys in their year. "My brother Ron here was having a nightmare,"Percy explained.

"It wasn't a nightmare!"Ron protested. "Professor, I woke up and Sirius Black was standing over me holding a knife!"

The rest of the conversation didn't interest Nymphadora much. She knew that Sirius Black wasn't the real threat in the castle. She wandered towards the portrait, where McGonagall was having an irritated discussion with their guard, Sir Cardogan.

Ginny followed her. "Dora, is something the matter?"

Nymphadora checked herself. It didn't help to look too suspicious. "I just wondered if there was anyone out there."

Ginny gave a weary sigh. "You're another one, aren't you? Ready to rush headlong into whatever trouble you can find?"

Nymphadora looked knowingly at the girl who would become famous for facing up to Bellatrix Lestrange. "I kind of think you are too."

"I think I've had my fill of trouble after last year."

"Well, sometimes trouble finds you anyway."

The conversation was halted by McGonagall. "All of you, back to your dorms. Mr Weasley, please stay here and keep watch until I return. Don't worry, all of you, this won't happen again. I'll make sure the tower is properly guarded."

Nymphadora looked back at the portrait hole and to her shock she caught sight of a figure in the corridor. But it wasn't Sirius Black. It was Philip Nave. He saw Nymphadora looking at him and slinked back into the shadows.

Nymphadora took a step towards the corridor but Percy stepped in front of her. "Come on, Dora, that means everyone. Including you."

Nymphadora started to protest but Hermione took her arm and shook her head. Reluctantly, Nymphadora went with her.

"What were you doing over there?"Hermione asked as they headed back to the dorms.

Nymphadora hesitated, unsure how much of the truth to reveal. "I thought I saw someone out there."

Hermione was suddenly alert. "Black?"

"No, I don't think so. Looked like a boy."

"Probably someone breaking curfew." Hermione suddenly seemed to consider the implications of that. "Which means he might be in danger if Black gets him!"

"Well, if he was just attacking random boys, he'd have attacked Ron, wouldn't he?"Nymphadora argued quickly. "I mean, if he's as bad and mad as they say, I doubt a bunch of third years could stop him."

"Hmm, there is that,"Hermione accepted.

"Trust me,"Nymphadora concluded with grimmer feelings than she intended,"he'll be all right."

* * *

"You're sure it was Nave?"Bradley asked for the umpteenth time as he and Nymphadora made their way through the school corridors the next morning.

"I do know what he looks like,"Nymphadora replied.

"But what was he doing there?" Bradley thought for a moment. "The Sirius Black that Ron saw, the one that was in the common room, could that have been Nave? Polyjuice or something?"

"I don't think so. I think that really was Sirius." Nymphadora gave a slight smile. "You know, it was really strange seeing Professor Longbottom getting told off at school."

"Tell me about it,"Bradley agreed. "At least Professor Macmillan was the class swot."

Nymphadora shook her head to try and get back on track. "So…if Nave could get into the castle like that, he must be close by. He must have a hiding place of some sort."

Bradley sighed. "Oh, wait, I think I know where this is going…"

"Let's find it."

* * *

Nymphadora and Bradley slowly explored the limits of the Hogwarts grounds. They weren't actually breaking any rules but they were literally going right to the edge of them. "Nave probably knows ways in and out of the castle,"Nymphadora mused.

"Probably,"Bradley agreed. "But how does that help us?"

"If he's as obsessed with killing Dad as we think he is, then he won't be off going to Vegas or something. He'd be close by."

"Very close by,"agreed a voice behind them. Nymphadora and Bradley spun round but Nave's wand was already raised. " _Immobulus_ ,"he snapped, freezing them in place.

"What are you going to do?"Bradley asked, suddenly nervous.

"I'm not going to kill you,"Nave assured them. Despite his words, he still seemed very young, as if trying to figure out what the rules were. "I only want to kill Harry Potter."

"But why?"Nymphadora asked. "What has he ever done to you?"

"Not me. My mother." Nave looked angry, yet also seemed eager to have an audience at last. "My name wasn't always Nave. They changed it to get rid of the shame. Just changed a couple of letters round. My name was Philip Vane. My mother was Romilda Vane." He looked at them, challengingly. "You've heard of her?"

"She was a Death Eater,"Nymphadora said simply.

Bradley could feel the spell easing enough for him to turn and look at her. "She worked for You-Know-Who?"

"No, no, she was on our side then. She fought against Voldemort in the Battle of Hogwarts. She joined the reformed Death Eaters later on, under Rodolphus Lestrange and Lucius Malfoy." Nymphadora thought hard. "She was there when the Purification Device was first used, she was one of the Death Eaters who lost her magic." She looked at Nave. "Is that what this is about? You think my dad ruined her life by trapping her in with the device?"

"No. It was what came after. He abandoned her. He abandoned her when she was pregnant." He looked at them, expecting a reaction. When he received none, he laughed scornfully. "Don't you get it yet? Harry Potter is my father!"


	14. Chapter 14: Revelations in the Future

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CHAPTER FOURTEEN: Revelations in the Future

 _Present Day_

Harry and Hermione paused outside the door to what appeared to be a very modest muggle home, a simple bungalow in the suburbs. "This is really where they ended up?"Harry asked.

Hermione raised an eyebrow. "You're saying you never looked them up?"

"I can't say I particularly cared. You're saying you did?"

"Could you seriously imagine me being satisfied not knowing something?"

"Fair point."

"And the answer I got was rather satisfying."

Harry smiled at the thought, then took a death breath. "Okay, let's get this over with." He walked up to the door and knocked on it.

A moment later, it opened to reveal Draco Malfoy. He looked his visitor up and down with a certain amount of curiosity. "Potter." He looked past Harry at Hermione. "Potters."

"Can we come in?"Hermione asked.

"Anything for my son's mother-in-law." Draco led them inside. They headed through to the kitchen where Draco's wife Pansy was drinking a cup of tea with the air of someone who considered such things beneath her but was willing to tolerate them for the sake of lesser mortals.

"Malfoys,"Hermione mused with just a hint of irony.

"Is there a reason you're here, Grainger/Whatever?"Pansy asked.

"We need to talk about Romilda Vane,"Harry explained.

Draco shrugged dismissively. "I haven't seen Vane in over ten years. Neither of us have."

"You still have a few contacts among pureblood families though. More than I do."

"You get the occasional face from the old days that doesn't consider me an amoeba but that's as far as it goes."

Harry glanced over at Pansy. "That last time we met, at Malfoy Mansion, you left me alone with her."

Pansy looked unrepentant. "Vane's perversions and your lack of willpower were no concern of mine."

Hermione bristled. "If you don't start being civil…"

"You'll hex a defenceless squib? Not very heroic of you."

"Dad." Everyone turned round at the voice to see Scorpius standing in the doorway, Rose just behind him. "We need your help."

"Nymphadora and one of her friends are trapped in the past,"Rose explained. "We need to know just what they're up against."

"We need to know about Romilda Vane,"Scorpius concluded. "And any children she might have had."

Draco looked hard at his son for a long time. Then he spoke. "Nott took her in. Took Vane in, I mean. It's not like anyone else would have him. Or her. It gave her a way to keep the pureblood lifestyle."

"And she had a child?"Harry pressed.

"So I heard. A boy."

"Nott's?"Hermione asked hopefully.

"Maybe."

"No-one I spoke to seemed to know,"Pansy interjected. "But she kept saying the father was someone famous. A great wizard."

"Probably not Theodore Nott then,"Harry admitted.

"He got the Wizengamot to seal the boy's files though,"Scorpius pointed out. "Had his name changed to Philip Nave."

"Do you think either of us know what the Wizengamot does these days?"Pansy retorted.

Harry shook his head. "I don't get it though. The Purification Device stripped Romilda of her magic. Completely. Forever. How could she have a magical child?"

"Same way my parents could,"Hermione pointed out. "There was still something in her genes even if she didn't have magic herself."

"But it would have to have been conceived afterwards?"Harry pressed. "I mean, if she'd been carrying a child when she was hit by the purification spell, the child would have lost its magic too."

"Not necessarily,"Rose replied. "The most prominently held theory is that magic is created at the moment of fertlisation. If…whatever happened had only happened a few hours earlier, she could have conceived a magical child as a result after the purification spell."

Harry felt alternative theories fading rapidly. "So it's possible."

* * *

Emily Potter, once known as Emily Longbottom, was in the office of the courier business she ran in Hogsmeade. "Floo message from Wiltshire,"she told one of her workers. "Pick up a parcel from this address." She handed him a piece of parchment.

"Emily?"asked a voice behind her and she turned to face her sister-in-law, Lily. "Can we talk?"

Emily nodded to an assistant. "I'm taking five." She led Lily through to her office. "What can I do for you?"

"I just wondered if James had heard any more. If you had."

"Nothing past what we told you."

"And there's no way of finding out more?"

"Your dad and your Uncle Ron are looking at every avenue we can find, but ironically the person who might have the best chance of finding out the truth is Nymphadora."

Lily bit her lip nervously. "And we've no way of talking to her."

Emily patted the younger woman on the shoulder. "Don't worry. I'm sure we will soon."

* * *

In the headmaster's office of Hogwarts were Neville, Ron and James. The same subject that was on Harry and Lily's minds was on theirs. "We can't let this affect our decision making," Ron decided. "We have to carry on the same as before."

"That's easy for you to say,"James replied. "It's not your family."

"Maybe not directly,"Ron retorted,"but last time I checked, I was still your uncle."

"And I was still your father-in-law,"added Neville.

"Okay, point taken,"James conceded. "But the question now is what do we do?"

"I'm not sure there's anything we can do,"Neville replied.

"Romilda Vane's disappeared,"Ron confirmed. "So's Theodore Nott. And quite a few members of other pureblood families."

"So we think this is some sort of conspiracy?"James checked. "Using Phillip Nave as their wandman?"

"A wandman who's now loose in the past,"Neville added. He glanced at Dumbledore's portrait. "I don't suppose you want to give us any more information about how that's going?"

"As I said before, Professor,"Dumbledore observed,"you will find out in time."

"I'm beginning to realise how irritated Harry was at not getting a straight answer out of you,"Ron sighed.

"So we just wait,"Neville decided.

"No, we don't just wait,"James replied. "At some point, Nymphadora, Bradley and Philip are going to come back here and we need to be ready for them. We need to set up charms to detect anyone moving through time and we need to have teams ready to respond if one of them gets triggered."

Ron and Neville looked at each other with a mixture of amusement and admiration. "Yes, sir,"Ron agreed.


	15. 15: Together Again for the First Time

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* * *

CHAPTER FIFTEEN: Together Again For the First Time

Nymphadora gaped at Philip. She was very aware of Bradley stood next to her and wondered exactly what he was thinking of her family. Truth be told, she wasn't sure what she was thinking herself at the moment. "You…you're my brother?"

Philip shrugged. "Half-brother, anyway."

Nymphadora shook her head. "No, no, that can't be right. Dad would never have cheated on Mum."

"Well, he did,"Philip snapped. "And I was the result. He left her on the streets, pregnant with me. He didn't give a damn about either of us."

"That doesn't sound like Professor Potter,"Bradley argued.

Somehow, her friend's faith in her father restored her own. "No, no it doesn't,"Nymphadora agreed. "If your mother was a Death Eater, what was she doing with my dad?"

" _Our_ dad was at Malfoy Mansion on his own,"Philip explained. "Just before the Purification Device was activated. To pass the time before his friends arrived, he decided to seduce my mother."

Nymphadora was thinking hard. "I've heard about Romilda Vane. She had a reputation at school for using love potions. She tried to slip one to my dad once. She tried again, didn't she? If my dad was there, then he was a prisoner. She used a love potion on him that made him sleep with her. That's how she got pregnant. I doubt my dad even knows about it."

"She might as well have used the Imperius curse,"Bradley agreed.

"Think what you like,"Philip snapped. "It's still his fault. My mother was left with nothing. If Theodore hadn't taken us in, I'd have grown up in a homeless shelter. He's going to pay for everything he put us through."

"You're going to kill him?"Nymphadora asked. "Don't you get it, you can't do that! Not here, not now. If he dies now, neither of us will be born, the whole of history will be changed. We'll just cease to exist…"

"Maybe there'll be another Philip Vane. One with a good father who'll love his mother. I've seen her, you know. Here at Hogwarts. About the same age I am now. She deserves a better life than the one he'll give her. I'll make sure of it. And Potter won't die. Not really. It'll be worse than death."

"Like what?"Nymphadora demanded.

"You'll find out. I've got it all worked out. It'll happen the night that he meets Black." And with that he suddenly apparated away.

Nymphadora and Bradley could suddenly move again. Bradley placed a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Are you all right?"

Nymphadora sighed. "I have no idea."

* * *

They made it back to the school in silence but just as they entered Bradley took hold of Nymphadora's arm and stopped her. "You can talk to me, you know."

Nymphadora looked at him challengingly. "And why would I want to talk to you?"

Bradley's gaze didn't waver. "Because you're my best friend. And because I'd want to talk to you if the villain of the piece turned out to be my brother."

Nymphadora smiled. Not a forced one, but a genuine one. Somehow, the concern in his eyes made her feel better. "To be honest, it doesn't really make any difference. Not yet. I mean, I'm going to have to have a difficult conversation with Dad when we get back…" She paused before amending it to," _If_ we get back."

" _When_ we get back,"Bradley insisted. "I'll make sure of it."

He had no way of doing so, of course. But Nymphadora accepted the reassurance. "Well, if we're going to stop Philip, we're going to need to work out what he's going to do."

"Something about the night your dad meets Black,"Bradley prompted.

Nymphadora thought. "Dad finds out that Sirius Black wasn't the traitor but they can't prove it so Sirius goes into hiding. And they found Peter Pettigrew as well, but he got away." She sighed. "There must be something else. Something that I don't know or I've forgotten. We need to find out."

At that moment, they saw Harry, Ron and Hermione approaching. Nymphadora took notice of the fact that the three of them were together again. "You've patched things up then?"

Ron shrugged. "Didn't seem important anymore."

Nymphadora looked at Hermione. She noticed that her mother had been crying. "Is something wrong?"

"They're going to kill Buckbeak,"Hermione replied, in a voice that sounded like she was just holding back the tears.

"For hurting Malfoy,"Harry added.

"But that was Malfoy's fault,"Bradley argued. "He deliberately insulted Buckbeak."

"Yeah but his family's important,"Ron replied. "That's all that matters to some people."

The trio walked between them and out into the grounds. Nymphadora looked after them. "Something happens,"she commented.

"What sort of something?"Bradley asked.

Nymphadora grimaced with frustration. "I can't remember. But Buckbeak doesn't die, they save him somehow. I think it might be important." She took Bradley's hand. "Come on, we need to follow them."


	16. Chapter 16: Murder by Proxy

**Thank you for the follow, favourite and reviews! (Even the one with the...interesting interpretation of this series.)**

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CHAPTER SIXTEEN: Murder by Proxy

Nymphadora and Bradley followed the trio from a distance until they entered Hagrid's hut. "What do we do now?"Bradley asked. "Do we sneak closer and listen in on them?"

Nymphadora thought for a moment, then shook her head. "It's Nave we need to keep an eye out for. He can't approach the hut without us seeing him."

"What if he's already in there?"

Nymphadora bit her lip thoughtfully. "I don't think he would be,"she decided at last. "This isn't when he said he was going to act."

The two of them sat down on the hillside. They were scanning the area around the hut when Bradley caught Nymphadora's arm. "There's someone there! In the woods!"

Nymphadora followed his gaze and quickly saw that he was right. Two people were sneaking about near the hut. She couldn't get a good look at them through the trees but neither of them appeared large enough to be an adult. She took Bradley's hand. "Come on, let's check it out."

The two of them scampered down the hill, being careful not to arouse the attention of their fellow watchers, whose attention was focused heavily on the hut. They circled round in a wide arc, until they were hidden behind the pair. It was then that Bradley gave a gasp of shock. "It's them! It's your parents!"

Nymphadora could see that he was right. She looked at the hut and saw four familiar figures through the window: Harry, Ron, Hermione and Hagrid. "But they're inside as well!"

"Could it be someone in disguise? Polyjuice potion?"

"And they found the same clothes as them?"Nymphadora asked doubtfully. And then it struck her. "It's them! It's them from the future!" She realised Bradley was looking at her in confusion. "Not our time," she amended. "It can't be more than a few hours."

"So what do we do?"Bradley wondered.

"If Nave's going to kill Dad and he doesn't care about changing history, then he could kill either one of them. So we need to keep an eye on them both." Nymphadora watched as the Harry, Ron and Hermione of the present day left the hut and scampered up the hillside. The Harry and Hermione that she was certain were from the future stayed where they were. She nudged Bradley. "You follow them, I'll stay here and keep an eye on the future versions. If we don't see each other before then, we'll meet in the Great Hall tomorrow morning."

Bradley nodded. "Good luck,"he said before slipping away.

* * *

Nymphadora had seen Harry and Hermione rescue Buckbeak, getting him away before the executioner arrived, and was glad that she'd remembered that part of her history right. Then she'd followed them to a hilltop overlooking the Weeping Willow of all places. She sat further up the hill, hoping that they didn't turn round. And then they sat down to wait, so she sat down too.

It was getting dark before she saw a motley collection of people arrive: Ron, a rat, a large black dog, Harry and Hermione…and, trailing a discreet distance behind them all, Bradley. Nymphadora glanced worriedly at the slightly older version of her parents just a few yards further down the hill. They couldn't see Bradley from where they were sitting but it was only a matter of time before he came into view. And that would be hard to explain.

Nymphadora scampered to her left, desperately wracking her brains for a way to alert her friend. She couldn't send up a light or anything. Even if the version of her parents with their backs to her didn't look round, it would be bound to attract the attention of the people down below. Then an idea hit her. She levelled her wand at Bradley and whispered " _Excrucio_." She made the Stinging Hex as mild as possible but it was still enough to give Bradley a jolt. But that was enough to make him look round. Nymphadora waved to him and he came up the hill towards her.

Nymphadora gestured for him to be quiet and led him up the hill out of earshot of Harry and Hermione. The rest of the group were involved in a rather protracted battle with the Weeping Willow that seemed to result in all of them, one by one, disappearing down a hole at the base of the tree.

Nymphadora nodded towards the version of her parents further down the hill. "They're waiting. They must know what's going to happen."

"Do you think this is the night?"Bradley asked.

"The night he meets Black,"Nymphadora recalled, repeating Sirius' words. And then her eyes widened. "Of course, Sirius Black was an animagus! That black dog, it must be him. And the rat, that must be Peter Pettigrew. This must be when they find out he was the real traitor."

"That means Nave could be waiting in there for them,"Bradley pointed out.

"Maybe,"Nymphadora admitted. "But…I don't know, it doesn't seem right somehow." They saw Lupin and Snape entering the hole as well. Then Harry and Hermione started talking. Nymphadora couldn't hear every word but she got the gist of it. Harry was talking about an attack by Dementors, an attack that was evidently about to happen to their slightly younger selves soon. And about how someone had cast a patronus to drive them off. Harry seemed to think it was his father. Nymphadora knew that was impossible, much as Hermione seemed to judging from her reaction, but suddenly everything became clear in her mind.

"Of course,"she murmured.

Bradley looked at her in confusion. "What?"

"Dementors. Don't you see? That's what Nave's going to do. That's what he meant about a fate worse than death. The Dementors are going to try and soul suck my dad and someone's going to save him by casting a patronus. But what if something happens to that person?"

Bradley cottoned on. "You mean what if Nave does something to that person…"

"Then the Dementors will do his work for him. And that means Nave must be somewhere nearby! Come on, we've got to stop him, now!"


	17. Chapter 17: Sibling Rivalry

**Thank you for the review!**

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CHAPTER SEVENTEEN: Sibling Rivalry

Nymphadora dashed through the forest, Bradley at her heels. "Where are you going?"he asked.

"I don't know!"she shouted back. "But we have to find Nave before he gets to Dad!"

Behind them, they heard a howl. "What was that?"Bradley asked.

"Professor Lupin. He's a werewolf."

Bradley glanced up at the full moon. "Thanks for telling me that before."

"Wait. Stop." Nymphadora held up her hand and Bradley came to her side. The landscape was spread out below them. In the centre of it was a lake. And on either side of the lake…was Harry Potter. Nymphadora looked from one to the other. To her left, the slightly younger version with Sirius Black, a flock of Dementors swooping down on them. To her right, the version from the very near future, debating whether or not to cast the patronus that would save his past self.

And then she saw him. Nave. He was further down to the right, just a few yards away from the older version of Harry. Far enough away that Harry couldn't see him but close enough to cast a spell. And if he succeeded…not only would the older Harry no longer exist but neither would either of them. The whole future that they had come from would be completely different.

Nymphadora aimed her wand, wondering what she could do. She didn't trust herself to cast a Shield Charm that would protect Harry from whatever Nave was aiming at him. She didn't even trust herself to Stun or Disarm him, not from that distance. It was time for something simple. " _Impedimenta_!"

The spell barely affected Nave, simply knocking him sideways slightly. But it did what she'd intended: The spell he'd been aiming at Harry went high and wide…so much so that Harry didn't even notice it.

Nave turned towards them. Bradley went to draw his wand but Nymphadora stopped him. "No. This is my fight." She walked down the hill towards her brother.

"Come to tell me off, big sister?"he sneered.

Nymphadora held her wand at the ready. "If my dad had known about you, he wouldn't have abandoned you,"she told him. "It's your mother that kept you apart."

"Harry Potter hated my mother,"Nave retorted. "You think he'd have happily come along and taken me out for weekends? He'd have taken me away from her."

"Well, then I guess there's only one thing to say. _Expelliarmus_!"

Nave deflected the spell and struck back. " _Excrucio_!" Nymphadora wasn't certain that she could deflect his spells so she dived aside. " _Sectumsempra_! _Confringo_!"

" _Impedimenta_!"Nymphadora retaliated but this time Nave was ready and turned the spell aside.

"You can't keep dodging!"he snapped.

"I don't need to,"Nymphadora replied. "I just need to keep your attention until that happens."

Nave spun round…in time to see a stag patronus driving off the Dementors, a triumphant Harry Potter finally overcoming his fears. "No!"Nave shouted in frustration.

Bradley came down to join Nymphadora. "I guess sometimes times don't change."

Nave glared at them. "You might have won this one but I've spent my whole life training to destroy Harry Potter. I'll win through eventually. And then you'll be sorry." He ran off into the woods.

"Do we go after him?"Bradley asked.

"No, let him go,"Nymphadora replied. "We're not going to finish things with Nave today. And there's another ending I want to see."

* * *

Nymphadora and Bradley stood in the grounds of Hogwarts, looking up at the highest tower. Fortunately, none of the three people up there were looking down at them. Looking out the window were Harry and Hermione…and outside it, sitting astride Buckbeak, was Sirius, exchanging a few words of thanks with them.

"So what happens to him?"Bradley asked.

"He spends the next two years in hiding,"Nymphadora explained. "A year from now, Voldemort returns and Sirius joins the Order of the Phoenix, Dumbledore's resistance against him. He provides them with a headquarters and what assistance he can. The same headquarters they've got now in fact, at Grimmauld Place. Then he dies in the first proper battle with Voldemort at the Department of Mysteries."

Bradley looked incredulous. "They saved him for that?"

"He's remembered as a hero. There are worse legacies." Nymphadora's gaze wandered to the patch of grass where she'd seen Albus lying dead…would see him lying dead, forty years in the future. For a moment, she considered warning her parents about him and about Ginny and Susan and Justin and Lupin and Sirius and all the people that weren't around in her time and should have been. Then she shook her head. That was the sort of thing Nave would do. The past was what it was.

"Come on,"she said at last. "I think we're about done here."


	18. Chapter 18: Small Victories

**Thank you for the review: Meant to post this yesterday but better late than never!**

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CHAPTER EIGHTEEN: Small Victories

Nave slowly made his way through the forest. He had spent a long time cursing Nymphadora Potter for her intervention. The hatred he felt for her almost rivalled that he felt for his father. She was the privileged one, the wanted one. The one whose mother Harry had loved and treated right. Not like his own mother, cast aside when he had got what he wanted. And because of that, Nave had decided to carry out one final task.

He didn't have to search very hard to find the person he sought cowering in a clearing. Peter Pettigrew. The man looked up when he saw Nave approaching but Nave held up his hands placatingly. "It's okay. I want to help you."

"Help me?" Pettigrew seemed hopeful for a moment, then he shook his head. "They saw me, they all saw me. Potter knows I'm alive. So does Lupin. Maybe even Dumbledore now. They know it was me, poor Peter, who betrayed them. They'll all be after me."

"The Ministry didn't believe them,"Nave told him soothingly.

"The Ministry doesn't matter. It's Dumbledore and the others. They'll be after me, they'll find me and they'll lock me away like they did Black. Or kill me. Black and Lupin were going to kill me." He looked despairingly at Nave. "And who do I have to help me? A boy!"

"There's one other person who will help you."

"Who?"Pettigrew asked hopefully.

"The Dark Lord."

"The Dark Lord?" Pettigrew thought about this for a moment then shook his head. "He's dead. Defeated."

"He's not dead. Haven't you heard about what happened two years ago? Him possessing Quirrell?"

"I heard rumours, from listening to Potter and his friends."

"He's in the forests of Albania. He's weak but he has a chance to return. And if you go to him, if you help him return, don't you think he'll protect and reward you?"

Pettigrew's eyes brightened at the thought. "Yes. Yes! I can still be on the winning side!"

"Come on. I'll help you get away from here." As he led Pettigrew threw the forest, Nave smiled to himself. He knew that Pettigrew would find Voldemort and restore him. And it would lead to the deaths of Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, Dumbledore and a great many other people that meant a lot to Harry Potter. And it was all down to him, the son Harry had abandoned.

It wasn't what he'd gone back in time for. But it was a start.

* * *

Harry, Hermione and Ron were all in the hospital ward when Nymphadora and Bradley tracked them down the next morning. Nymphadora looked at Ron's injured leg. "What happened to you?"

Ron shot an awkward look at Harry and Hermione. "I got attacked by a dog,"he said at last.

Nymphadora knew that wasn't the full story from what they'd seen the previous night and had a good idea what had really happened, but only gave a nod of apparent acceptance.

"Were you looking for us?"Hermione asked.

Nymphadora and Bradley exchanged glances. "We just wanted to let you know we're leaving,"Bradley explained.

"We have to go back to our parents,"Nymphadora added. "Things seem to be a bit too dangerous around here."

"Will you be back next year?"Harry asked.

"Probably not. I think we'll be somewhere else by then."

"You're talking as if we're never going to see you again,"Hermione realised.

Nymphadora looked awkward. "Well…hopefully you will."

* * *

Nymphadora and Bradley headed to Dumbledore's office where the headmaster was waiting for them. He gave them a penetrating look. "Did you know the truth about Sirius Black?"

"Where we come from, it's history,"Nymphadora pointed out.

Dumbledore nodded. "I suppose I should be glad that the truth will come out in time. When one gets to my age, it is rare to meet someone more knowledgable than you. I don't suppose there are any other pieces of information you might care to share?"

Nymphadora thoght for a moment. There was a risk, of course, a risk of tampering with history. But if she could give it a nudge in the right direction… "Last year, Voldemort's old diary turned out to contain a memory of him that was capable of possessing Ginny Weasley, maybe even of becoming real and solid."

"That is correct,"Dumbledore confirmed. "I haven't quite worked out yet how that came to happen. It's a magic quite unlike any I've encountered before."

"Keep looking into it. It's more important than you might think. It's something Voldemort was looking into when he was a student here."

Bradley coughed. "Um, I get that this cryptic chat is important and all but there was something about us getting back to our own time?"

"Yes, that's true,"Dumbledore agreed. "If you're sure your work here is completed?"

"Nave's plan failed,"Nymphadora replied. "I don't think he'll stay in this time period much longer and we need to let the people in our time know the truth about him."

Dumbledore indicated a circle he'd drawn on the floor of his office. "Then step in here. If I can duplicate what Nave did correctly, it will return you to the place you left and as much time will have passed for them as it has for you."

"You have placed our school records on file?"Bradley checked.

"If, as you say, my portrait is in the headmaster's office, I will let them know where to find them."

Nymphadora and Bradley stood in the circle as Dumbledore began the incantation. As they began to fade away, Nymphadora couldn't resist calling out "Good luck with the Triwizard Tournament!"


	19. Chapter 19: Homecoming

**Thank you for the reviews! Even the _other_ one with an "interesting" perspective on this series. Are all these reviewers who don't log in part of a weird secret society or something?**

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CHAPTER NINETEEN: Homecoming

Nymphadora and Bradley rematerialised in the grounds of Hogwarts. It was dark but the area was instantly filled with bright lights and loud noises. A large group of figures came running out of the school, wands drawn and surrounded them. Harry, Ron, Hermione, Neville, James and Ernie, together with Ernie's wife Angela and James' wife Emily. Despite the furore of their arrival, Nymphadora and Bradley mostly just felt relieved that these were indeed the versions from their time.

James was the first to notice who their quarry was and pointed his wand away from them. "Nymphadora? Bradley?"

And then there were the hugs and questions and everyone wanting to know where they'd been and what they'd done. Neville cleared his throat. "Um, maybe we should discuss this somewhere in private?"

Nymphadora shot a look at Harry. He met her gaze and then looked away. In that moment, she knew that he was aware of what she was thinking. And that it was true. "Yes, I think we'd better."

"Your office?"Harry asked Neville.

Neville nodded. "Ron, James, you'd better come with us. Harry and Hermione?"

"We're coming,"Hermione confirmed.

James turned to the others. "Can you stay on guard here? And contact Timothy and Helena, let them know Bradley's back."

* * *

The seven of them gathered in the headmaster's office. Nymphadora looked at Harry. "Nave said he was your son. Is he?"

Harry waited a moment and then nodded. "I think he must be, yes."

"Your dad didn't know anything about him,"Hermione assured her. "Romilda Vane, she forced him with a love potion."

Nymphadora nodded. "I'd guessed that much."

"And did you know we were going to get sent back in time?"Bradley asked. "We saw all of you there." He nodded at James. "Except you, of course, Professor Potter."

"No,"Neville replied. "We couldn't remember you clearly until recently." He nodded to Dumbledore's portrait. "The work of one of my predecessors."

Dumbledore gave a look of affected innocence. "I merely wanted to avoid confusion."

"What we don't know is what Nave was doing there,"Ron added.

"We know that you left just after we found out Sirius was innocent,"Harry recalled. "Did something happen then?"

"It was the Dementors,"Nymphadora explained. "He tried to stop you casting the patronus that would save yourself."

"How utterly insane!"Hermione exclamed. "He would have messed up the whole of history. Nothing would have made sense anymore."

"But what happened to him after that?"Ron asked.

"We don't know,"Bradley admitted.

"He must still be in the past,"Harry realised.

Hermione nodded. "But he'll probably be back soon."

"Then we need to be ready for him,"James decided. "Get the Order members ready for when he reappears." He looked at Ron. "Ideally, I'd ask for some Aurors to help us…"

"…but the Wizengamot tried to bury Nave's file,"Ron concluded. "We don't really know if we can trust anyone at the Ministry."

"So it's just going to be us."

"And us,"Nymphadora added, shooting a look at Bradley who nodded in agreement.

"Well, I've no objections,"James replied.

"It sounds like you've done enough to earn the right to come along,"Neville agreed. All eyes fell on Harry and Hermione.

Harry shot a look at his wife who seemed to have no objections before turning back to their daughter. "Okay. But goodness knows how we're going to explain this to Bradley's parents…"

* * *

Not long after, a small but determined deputised group was waiting in the shadows of the Hogwarts grounds. Nymphadora nudged Bradley, who was crouched next to her. "You okay?"

"Just another typical day of having you as my best friend,"he replied. "It's a shame Gemini and the others aren't here."

"I know but it was hard enough convincing the adults to let us stay. We'll fill them in later."

"Quiet,"James hissed. "Something's happened."

And indeed it was. A cone of light appeared in the grounds ahead of them and a figure materialised in the middle of it. Nave. Once more the group came running out of hiding to surround the new arrival.

Harry stepped forward and looked at Nave evenly. "I know who you are."

Nave looked at him scornfully. "I know who you are as well… _Dad_."

"Philip Nave, you're going to have to come to the Ministry,"Ron announced.

Suddenly, there was an explosion from a _Bombarda_ spell. A dozen or so figures came swooping down on brooms. At their head was Theodore Nott. Seated behind him and hanging on tight was Romilda Vane.

"'Fraid not, Weasley,"Nott said as he jumped down in front of them, wand at the ready. "The retrieval team's here."

"You really thought I went back in time at random?"Nave asked. "We've been planning this for years. I knew exactly when I'd have to travel back and when I'd arrive. And these people were waiting to collect me when I got here."

"We've spent a lot of time drumming up support amongst the purebloods,"Nott explained. "There's still a few that don't actually like the House of Potter. And getting rid of you could have made the world a much better place for us."

Harry's gaze fell on Romilda. "Why did you go to these people instead of me?"

"Because you'd already got what you wanted from me."

"That's not true,"Harry protested. "You were the one that wanted something from me!"

"Well, it hardly matters now."

"Were the Malfoys in on this?"Ron asked.

One of the other men shook his head. "Cousin Pansy tends to be left out of the loop somewhat these days. I'm Archibald Parkinson, if you didn't know."

Hermione's gaze swept across the others present. She saw a face that she recognised, someone who'd been two years below them. "Stuart Brown? But…you were in Gryffindor with us, your sister…"

"My sister got her throat ripped out by a werewolf because she followed your ideals,"Brown snapped. "If this plan had worked, I could have stopped that from happening. So don't try and use her memory against me."

"And I think we're leaving now,"Nott decided. " _Impedimenta_!" The spell knocked Neville, Ernie and Angela flying and allowed Nave to run free from his captors and join the cabal of purebloods.

"We just need to get outside the anti-apparation wards and we can get clear,"Romilda reminded them.

Nott nodded. "Everyone on the brooms. _Protego_!" He cast a shield charm to cover their exit.

Harry stepped forward, his attention on the boy separated from him by the shield. "Philip, it doesn't have to be like this. I know about you now, you can come with us, we'll work this out…"

Nave laughed. "Don't you get it? I _hate_ you. And I might not have managed to kill you in the past or in the present but who knows? Maybe I'll manage it in the future." He mounted one of the brooms and Harry said nothing more until the group had all vanished with a frustrating plop.


	20. Chapter 20: Back Home

**Thank you for the review! Last chapter coming up.**

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CHAPTER TWENTY: Back Home

After everything that had happened, somehow Nymphadora and Bradley were a room on their own again. They had been left in one of the empty classrooms after the disappearance of Philip and his allies. "So, do you think they missed us?"Nymphadora asked.

"They'd better,"Bradley replied darkly.

"I kind of miss everyone from back then. I know some of them are around now but it's not the same."

"It was kind of lonely though,"Bradley pointed out. "We were apart from them. We knew things that they didn't know and we couldn't tell them. And we couldn't tell them everything about us."

"Yeah, I guess that's true,"Nymphadora conceded. She smiled at him. "I'm glad I had you there with me, though."

"I'm glad I was there too,"Bradley agreed. They hugged, relieved to be home at last.

A moment later, they were interrupted by a large crowd of fellow students bursting in: Gemini, Beverley, Maxwell, Flavia, Tracey and Balthasar. "It's true!"Tracey exclaimed excitedly. "You're back!"

"We missed you at Christmas, Auntie Dora,"Balthasar said with a bit more restraint.

"Didn't anyone miss me?"asked Bradley with mock affront.

"Why, who are you?"Maxwell joked. He gave Bradley a light punch on the arm. "Seriously though, mate, good to have you back."

"There's been no-one good to hang out with all year,"Gemini complained.

Flavia gave her an ironic look. "Thanks very much."

"Okay, important things first,"Nymphadora decided,"who won the House Quidditch Cup?"

"We did!"Tracey said cheerily. "Beverley played against Ravenclaw."

Nymphadora looked at her in surprise. "You did?"

Beverley nodded awkwardly. "I was reserve Chaser. You weren't here and then Amanda got injured…I guess all those times I helped you practise paid off."

Nymphadora patted her on the shoulder. "I'm glad. I just wish I could have seen it."

Ernie Macmillan poked his head around the door. "Er, Nymphadora? I'm sorry to interrupt but there's some other people here to see you."

Nymphadora nodded. "Coming, Professor."

* * *

Ernie showed Nymphadora to one of the classrooms, gestured her inside, and then withdrew. Nymphadora stepped in and was immediately hit by eight stone of enthusiastic red-head as Lily nearly bowled her over with a hug. Nymphadora looked past her to see her other half-siblings, James, Rose and Hugo, were there as well.

"Thank goodness you're back,"Lily told her. "I thought I was going to be the smallest again."

"Well, we couldn't have that,"Nymphadora agreed.

As soon as Lily released her, Rose gave Nymphadora a hug that was less all-encompassing but no less loving. "Welcome back."

Hugo adjusted his glasses nervously. "Er, yes. Welcome back."

"Welcome back, again,"James said with a wry smile.

"So what have I missed?"Nymphadora asked.

"You heard about the Quidditch Cup?"Lily asked.

"Got that."

Hugo coughed. "Um, Marie and I are engaged."

Nymphadora smiled. "That's great. I hope I can make the wedding."

"I don't see any reason why not. Not now you're back."

"What about where you've been?"Rose asked. "Did you really see Mum and Dad and Uncle Harry when they were young?"

Nymphadora nodded. "And so many others. Professor Dumbledore and Professor Snape and Professor Lupin. Sirius Black." She glanced briefly at James and Lily. "Your mum. And Professor Longbottom and Professor Macmillan…"

"I kind of envy you,"James noted. "It would have been nice to see some of them again."

"And is Philip Nave really our brother?"Lily asked.

The mood seemed to darken almost immediately. "He said he was,"Nymphadora replied. "Dad seems to think it's true."

"I think I do as well,"James admitted. "Rose and I were both there at Malfoy Mansion, when he's meant to have been conceived. Dad and Hermione tried to hide it from us but…it was obvious that something had happened."

Rose nodded. "It looks like our lives just got more complicated."

* * *

Harry and Hermione had retired to their quarters. Hermione looked at her husband carefully. Over the years, the many years she'd known him, since even before their third year at Hogwarts when they'd met a girl who neither of them had known was their daughter from the future, she'd grown to recognise when something was troubling him. "What are you thinking about?"

Harry sighed. "Voldemort."

That did surprise Hermione. It had been a long time since Harry's one-time nemesis had weighed on his thoughts. "Why?"

"When I was young, I used to worry that there were similarities between the two of us. But now…now I'm seeing a lot more similarities between him and Philip. A woman uses a love potion on the man she's been obsessed with for years and makes him conceive a child with her. A child that grows up dark."

"You don't think he'll become as bad as Voldemort, do you?"

"I don't know. I hope not. Dumbledore once said that it was because of the way he was conceived that Voldemort was incapable of feeling or understanding love."

Hermione could see why that would trouble him. "You know, Dumbledore wasn't right about everything."

"And I hope he was wrong that time. But all the same… The best case scenario is I've got a son out there who hates me so much he wants to kill me."

"Do you think we'll see him again?"

"Who knows? But given our lives, I'd be surprised if we don't."

Hermione put her arms round him. "Harry, we've got our daughter back. And if we ever have an opportunity to help Philip, we will. Maybe we should look on the bright side?"

Harry kissed her lightly. "I can do that."

* * *

 **All opinions welcome! (Even if I do sometimes regret saying that.)**


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